The Legend of Zelda: The Ether Blade
by Link-Reborn
Summary: Zelda and Link are swept of on an adventure to protect their Tribe from the clutches of Dragmire. However their quest becomes one to save the world from the fiery wrath of Demise. The only weapon that can destroy him is one he and Hylia made together: The Ether Blade.
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

"Some say the world was first made of music. And if you listen you can still hear it playing. One can control the fabric of the universe should they find the right tune. But one can only access it with the holy instruments that fell from the Heavens. If you find one- you hold Hylia's creation in your hands...

"Link? Are you listening?"

I blink vaguely.

"Hylia's creation in your hands." I repeat stifling a yawn.

"This is a very important legend!" says Bruta. "Pay attention! You sleep too much."

"I'm listening." I sigh as I curl up on the sand. He slaps my ear.

"Sit up!"

"I'm awake!" I snap.

"I'm getting to the best part, Link!" Bruta says with an eager glint in his eyes that makes me want to punch him.

"Of course we all know the legend of the swords of good and evil: Fi the Master Sword and Ghirahim the Malice Sword. But there is talk of a forgotten sword that has the power of both. She sleeps where Demise and Hylia can never venture. Only few oracles know pieces of the information of where her location is. And there is talk my boy, that when Hylia is ready to fight Demise for the final time- the sword will awaken and come to her."

"You talk as though the swords are alive." I say.

"Well they are." Bruta answers. I give him an odd look.

"They were created by the Gods. Intelligent spirits dwell in their blades. They can even walk the earth as living beings if their master calls them to."

"Weird." I say.

"No, it's fascinating!"

"Yo, Link!"

I turn only to get a slap on the shoulder.

"Where've you been? We need to set sail! You still listening to fairy tales?" Fado asks

"History lessons!" Bruta corrects.

"Look I was kidnapped." I sigh. "I didn't have much of a choice and hey- who says no to a free nap?"

We laugh except Bruta.

"That's not funny."

"Whatever Brutes." Fado slaps the old man's shoulder. "Come on, Link, let's go fishing." He sets off toward the main beach.

"Listen." I say to Bruta who looks very cress-fallen. "I'm just messing with you- I've had a long night. Don't take it personally." I hurry back to my job. The sea is a bright teal under the sun, white capped and lively. Fado and I prepare our little boat and set off toward the other fishing fleets.

We cast the nets and wait but nothing bites. I sit on the bow, my bare feet dangling over the waves. The horizon swallows my attention. I can feel it fill my soul with desire.

"Hey, Link- Look!" I turn. The Great tribal long boat is sailing toward us. Our warrior princess has returned from the outer islands!

The other fisherman wave as the soldiers paddle to the drum beat. I jump to my feet, holding a rope to keep me balanced on my perch. There she is. My princess, standing boldly at the front, her golden hair flowing in the breeze. The feather headdress stands tall against the wind, wreathing her head in colours of magenta, red and orange. Her porcelain face is set with vivid red painted across it: the blood of her first kill.

"Zelda!" I wave.

"Don't do that, you idiot!" Fado clobbers me. I fight my arm free and continue waving. She looks at me with her frigid grey eyes and for an instant I see a crooked grin light her face. My heart melts. The chief steps in front of my view, glowering with disapproval.

"Don't make him mad!" Fado tugs at me.

"He's always mad." I laugh. The chief turns away, standing protectively by his daughter. The long boat paddles toward shore.

"One of these days, man..." Fado shakes his head.

"I'll be hers." I say.

"No- he'll have you exiled, you fool! You know full well she is betrothed to the son of the Ordon tribe."

I aggressively pull in the empty nets.

"Not if I can help it. Royalty or not she has a choice."

"And what makes you think she'll chose you?" Fado laughs. I smile inwardly at the memory of us sneaking off into the woods to hunt together... and other such things. I release the sails.

"What are you doing?"

"Let's set off toward the uncharted waters!" I point. "The fish have got to be there. And if we catch the most-"

"We'll get to present them to the chieftain." Fado finishes for me.

"Exactly and guess who is sitting right next to him." I say.

"You sly dog." Fado catches me in a head lock and ruffles my dirty blond hair.

"I know you have a major crush on Zelda- but I don't know about this." Fado complains as we sail further and further into the unknown.

"Just a bit more." I say.

"Look, let's just cast the nets- I'm sure there is something here-"

"Wait...do you see that?" I ask. I notice there is something floating far off, bobbing in and out of the waves.

"Is that a whale?" Fado squints, shielding his eyes.

"No, it's too small." I say.

"A shark?"

"Doesn't look like it. Let's check it out."

"Link-"

"Just a look, we don't have to go too close." I say. Fado doesn't look pleased, but he steers us toward it the same. I lean forward, craning my neck trying to figure it out. It's black and I see a bit of orange. And as we get closer, I see that it appears to be slumped over a piece of drift wood.

"Is that...?"

"That's a person!" I gasp. I help paddle over as quickly as possible.

"Careful, Link! He might be one of the others."

"Others or not he needs our help." I snap. Once in reach I take a hold of his arm. It's cold, slippery and limp. "Help me." We haul him into the boat with great difficulty. He is a very slender, tall young man: a fiery ginger, with a green headband that trails down his back. He is wearing black leather with many belts and buckles. It's sleeveless and he has a cape made of black fur. He is good looking but his brow is troubled. He is very tanned and able bodied. Perhaps a warrior? I wonder if saving him was a good idea.

"Is he alive?" Fado asks, clutching the mast nervously.

"He's breathing...barely." I say, checking his vitals. I place one of the extra blankets over him. He doesn't stir. "He needs help. Let's go back to shore."

"Are you sure?"

"Well what else should we do?" I snap. Fado reluctantly complies.

"Well you got your wish." Fado whispers. I ignore him. We carry the stranger on the make shift stretcher. The warriors escort us to the chieftain. It will be his judgment of whether the man is worthy of help or if he is a danger. The stranger looks close to my age. Though I don't know him, I don't want to witness him being executed.

We come to the main tent which is strung up at the base of the largest tree in the forest. The Chief is standing sternly in front of it, arms crossed, his warrior paint still on. Zelda is nowhere to be seen. We place the stranger at his feet. The guards are at the ready. The Chief eyes him thoughtfully. He crouches down and removes the blanket. He checks for weapons then wounds.

"Zelda." he calls without looking away. My heart twists up as she steps out of the tent. Her face is clean and she is wearing her usual furs. She catches my eye, and a mischievous glint lights them. I smile like an idiot.

Without asking she crouches down by her father and opens the front of the strangers coat. She places her hands on his toned chest. I shift uncomfortably. She closes her eyes and begins to sing.

_Voice of Healing, let your power flow_

_Through my hands I let your vibrance glow_

_Out of the arts of Hylia and her three_

_Let this man wake, let his soul be free_

The stranger gasps and his eyes open. He grabs Zelda's throat. I pounce on him before any of the guards move. I am on top, pinning this wrists down. He stares at me with wild green eyes. He thrashes but I have a firm hold. And as he pants, confusion slowly dawns.

"What's going on?"

"Link." The Chief growls and Zelda pushes me off. The stranger looks at her and his eyes light up.

"Well hello." He purrs. I want to kick him in the face. Zelda is impassive.

"What is your name?" she snaps.

"Give me yours." he says. Her father rises to his fullest height.

"I am Chieftain Azrune. And this is my _daughter_ Zelda." There is a hint of threat to his introduction. "Who are you and where did you come from?" he barked. The stranger doesn't flinch to my surprise. I do.

"I would tell you, but my mind's blank. I was hoping you'd tell me."

"You have no memory?" Zelda asks.

"Not a clue what my name is." The stranger laughs. Weird guy. "So where am I? How did you find me...come on something's gotta jog my memory."

"I don't believe you." Zelda says coldly. "You act too confident for someone that knows so little."

"Defence mechanism I guess." the stranger shrugs. "I wouldn't know, I can't remember."

This cocky prick is really starting to get to me. Zelda places her thumbs to his temples and closes her eyes. The guards ready their spears.

"You a mind reader?" The stranger asks after an awkward pause. Suddenly her nails dig into his head and she forces their faces closer.

"Are you of the Darunian Clan?" she drills.

"No." The stranger gasps straining to pull her off. I help hold him down.

"What is your name?"

"I don't know-"

"What is your name?"

"Ow- will you stop it?"

"Who sent you- who sent you!"

"I DON'T KNOW!" he shouted back. She releases him.

"He is right he has no memory." she reports. "I felt no vibes."

"So you _can_ read minds." the stranger says, massaging his head. "Painfully as it turned out."

"We can't prove he is one of the others." Zelda says over her shoulder.

"Nor can we prove he isn't." Growls the Chief in return. "Your life is spared on one condition: That you obey our every rule and that you never go unwatched. I am assigning a guard, and you will not leave confinement for three days."

"Do I get food?- and a bed?" the stranger asks rudely. The Chief's biceps clench.

"If you behave."

"As of now I'm an angel." he claps his hands together earnestly. I notice Zelda's crooked grin appear. _My_ crooked grin. "Help me up." He reaches toward me. I don't comply. He shrugs and struggles to sit up. "Problem. I can't feel my legs." he says rather calmly.

"Yeah right." I mutter.

"Link, I am assigning you as the guard to this man."

"What?" I protest.

"You found him, he's your responsibility."

"But I-"

"Take him to confinement. And you are not to leave him or I will skin you alive you hear?" By the look of those fiery eyes I believe him.

"Told you not to make him angry." Fado mutters to me as we pick up the stretcher. Brooding, I help carry the stranger off while he lounges like the king of cats. Out of the corner of my eye I see him wave to Zelda. It will be a miracle if I live through the night without committing murder.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

I flip my dagger in my fingers. Of all the people to watch him: Me. I could be spending this time with my Zelda. I toss the blade into the earth and wrench it out again.

"SO!" Shouts a voice in my ear. My blade is at his throat in a second. "Link, right?" the stranger asks without flinchimg, only his head poking out of the tent.

"Aren't your legs supposed to be numb?" I say.

"I dragged myself over- it's boring in here. Hey, you know that princess chick?"

"Her name is Zelda."

"Cool, yeah she's somethin' right? She's got a nice set of tits."

My knuckles creak over the hilt.

"Easy with that, lover boy." He laughs pushing the knife away with a finger.

"Listen carefully." I bring it back to his throat. "You stay away from her and I won't blind you, got it?"

He laughs softly.

"Like you could."

Before I know it I have his throat and my dagger is aimed at his eye.

"Try me." I hiss. I'm on the ground in a second, inside the tent, my own dagger at my throat.

"Whoa." The stranger pants, as startled as me. "I'm so cool!" he laughs. I struggle, thoroughly embarrassed. "You better watch yourself." he gloats. "I may not remember much but _dang_ am I quick!"

"Get off me!" I shove him. He's laughing wickedly, playing with my dagger. I try to grab it but he dodges. His knees give out.

"Whoa, not quite working yet." He laughs totally unconcerned. I wrestle my weapon free. He's smirking. I'm going to cut his throat. I really am. "You better get out there or Mr. Chief is going to skin you." He winks. I storm out.

"Link." I jolt. It's Fado.

"Hold the fort!" He calls, running past. "Intruders coming!"

"From the sea?" I ask.

"No, the north!" He shouts back meeting up with the other hunters and heading to the outskirts of the camp. I want to run after them. I don't want to miss out on the fight. Zelda will no doubt be leading the troops. Though I know she is a capable fighter, I want to be at her side.

"Ooooh- I fight?" The stranger pokes his ridiculously handsome face out of the tent again. I refrain from kicking it.

"Stay in there." I shove him roughly, with my hand instead. Trumpets sound. I straighten. Those aren't ours. I hear war cries, many of them, coming in the forest. I hold my dagger ready, bending my knees. The sounds of battle fill my blood with ice. My legs are shaking.

"Aw is he scared?"

"Shut up!" I snap, trying to listen. There are screams. My people are running! Abandoning their tents.

"Run! They have overtaken the hunters!" One shouts rousing people from their tents, ushering children to the beach. "To the boats!"

"What about Zelda! Is she Okay!" I yell. My voice is drowned in the screams and thundering feet.

"Well this doesn't look pretty."

I turn and grab the stranger by the throat. I wrench him to his feet. "Can you walk?" I bark.

"Um- I think-"

"Good!" I drag him by the arm.

"I didn't say run!" he gasps staggering after me. He's a tall man, so when he trips I go down with him.

"Dammit!" I say trying to get up. In the panic, people leap over us, making it hard to rise. Only when the last of them clear off can I get to my feet. I'm helping the stranger when I see them. People running into the camp, torches and weapons raised. I freeze. My home goes up in flames before my eyes. The orange tongues lick up the trees, and scorch the paths. Some stragglers, my people are trampled and beaten with clubs. Blood paints the ground. I hold up my dagger, struggling to breathe. One is running at me, screaming, her matted hair in wild mess. Her eyes are bright with madness. I duck her club and slight open her side. Another comes. I stab, and duck, duck and slash. I've all together forgotten the stranger. Fear pumps in my heart like cold needles.

A club smashes the side of my face. I find the ground has come to me. Warmth pools around my face. This is going to hurt. Blinding agony shakes me. I start kicking as if to run from it. The screams have stopped. It is eerily quiet- except for a ringing sound. Tears swimming my vision I crack an eye. I detect movement. Wild movement.

There is the stranger a few yards away, fighting over my body, holding a stolen club, beating back the intruders. He kicks, claws and swings, turning and twisting, baring his teeth like a feral animal. But there are too many, they close in on him like a pack of wolves. Soon he is over taken, trapped in a tangle of arms and teeth. He is brought to his knees, arms held and head wrenched back by the hair. It takes six to hold him down.

A woman steps into view. A slinking, tall, catlike- wait that's actually a man? I can't tell. No he's definitely a man. His skin tight leather pants are testimony to that. He is very pale, bare-chested and wearing a red-chestnut fur cap. His hair is snow white and draped over one eye.

"Look who it is." He drawls. "I'm so pleased it was this easy to find you. Though how incredibly boring you've made this endeavour for me. You fell directly into my hands. Did you honestly think that running off to the closest tribe would keep you hidden?"

"I don't know you!" The stranger spits.

"Oh my, you've already forgot my name? How rude. Well I suppose it is only fair since I don't remember yours." He simpers almost flirtatiously.

"Go suck a dick!"

"Well, the hygiene of your mouth certainly hasn't changed." he hisses venomously. He brings a black rapier to his throat. "I am Lord Ghirahim, and I demand you tell me where I can find the Sword of Good and Evil."

"You're wasting your time." The stranger smirks. "I don't remember my own name let alone what you're talking about."

"No matter." Ghirahim soothes, stroking his cheek with the tip. "I'll find ways of jogging that memory of yours."

The stranger struggles defiantly.

"I'd love to see you try, bitch!" He winces as Ghirahim inflicts a slice to the face.

"Let it be known." Ghirahim turns to announce to the inhabitants of the forest. "That this forest and everything in it now belongs to my Master, Chieftain Dragmire. And soon he will be God of all that is!"

Awful, screechy cries of triumph fill the air. I wince, the sound is piercing and makes the world spin.

A clear battle cry cut through the sound. A lithe figure jumped at Ghirahim. He blocks but the wild fighter keeps coming, beating at him with a wooden stave. I know that fighter. It is my warrior princess.

Zelda and Ghirahim pause to circle one another. He eyes her as if intrigued.

"Tell me your name, mortal." He demands. She charges. Their weapons lock. She kicks him. He grabs her hair and throws her down. I struggled to rise. I hurt so much. I want to yell her name as he raises his blade. But my jaw is locked and splintering.

A roar breaks through the jeers. Our Chieftain, and her father, tramples Ghirahim like an angry bison. The pathetic man is no match for his rage.

"LEAVE THIS PLACE!" He bellows, throttling Ghirahim, lifting him off his feet. Then all the Chief's bodyguards advance in, taking on the watching intruders. I am holding myself up with shacking arms. My one eye won't open and my legs are having so many spasms, I can't use them. I want to fight, I have to fight.

Zelda is clutching her right arm. Her brace has shattered from the fall, revealing the triangular birthmark on the back of her hand. Ghirahim smiles. With a snap of his fingers, he vanishes and appears outside of the fighting.

"No matter. I have what I want."

"HEY!" The stranger breaks free charging at him. "I'm not done with you tight pants! How do you know me! What sword?!" Just as he leaps to tackle him, Ghirahim vanishes in an explosion of diamonds. The stranger lands on the ground, cursing.

"Link!" Zelda gasps, hurrying to me. She takes my head in her lap. "Hold on alright- stay awake- no don't-"

My eyes close.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

"They will return." Says Chieftain Azrune. "And with greater numbers."

He, Zelda, the stranger and I are sitting in the main tent, one of the few that isn't burned. My face is bandaged with bark and plastered with healing remedies. I can't talk at the moment, my jaw is broken. The swelling has gone down quite a bit but I'm still bleeding. The ground stopped swaying but I still feel sick.

"So what do we do?" Zelda asks.

"Get him out of here." Azrune points to the stranger. I feel a flutter of satisfaction in my gut.

"What did I do?" he snaps angrily.

"They are after you. You draw them like a magnet. It is vital that you leave this place before they come for you again."

"But I don't even know what they want from me! I don't remember anything! You can't just throw me out into the wild!" He says. "And you heard him, didn't you?! This Drag-ama-what-his-face wants to become God. If they get what they want from me I don't think the future will be all that bright for you folks."

"We could send an escort." Zelda suggests. "Someone we trust to keep him hidden and safe until we find out who this Dragmire is."

The Chieftain nods thoughtfully,

"Lord Azrune." A guards steps in. "Bruta is here to see you."

"Send him in."

Bruta is clutching an armful of scrolls in his withering arms. He is shaking quite a bit and his bald head is shining with sweat.

"My Chief, may I have your permission to speak?"

Azrune nods.

"From what I hear, the leader of the trespassers called himself Lord Ghirahim. I know this name from ancient scripture. And his ability to vanish into thin air only confirms my suspicion. He is Demise's blade: The Malice Sword."

Silence.

"A-a-a-a-and...he's a walking, talking weapon, how?" The stranger asks rudely.

"He was created by a demi-god. Pure malice runs in his veins. He is a living blade, that has a spirit form which can walk and talk, as you say, just like us. With him returning after centuries of sleep can only mean one thing: The final showdown is here. The great Goddess Hylia has awakened in mortal form again. She and Demise are finally going to fight for the last time. And it is vital that she find the Sword of good and evil first or he will destroy her with it!" Bruta says.

"That's nice and all, but can't she just slit his throat with any old knife and be done with him?" The stranger says.

"You don't know the- well of course you don't!" Bruta blustered. "In the beginning Hylia created the Heavens out of music. She created instruments and players to join in her song. But one of the players refused. He preferred silence so she created a different world for him- our world. But he ruined it with storms and chaos. Hylia fought with him over it and in the end they decided to forge a sword together: a living sword that could choose between them. The one chosen would win our world. But once The Ether Sword was created she was unbiased and chose neither. Furious, the dark spirit forged his own blade: Ghirahim the Malice Sword. He vowed he would destroy Hylia and all her creations. And that's when he was named Demise. But with the help of the other players she sealed him away. But it was not enough and all their power was exhausted. So she created, Fi the Master Sword and chose a hero to wield it, because she did not have the heart to fight. And so to completely destroy Demise, she came to Skyloft and was born as a mortal. And as you all know, well some of you," Bruta eyes the stranger. "Her plan failed, Demise managed to break free and put a curse on her and her hero, that the three of them would forever battle to the ends of time until he has destroyed them both. Her only hope is to find the Ether Sword."

"But, Bruta," Zelda says, "why can't she call upon her Chosen Hero to vanquish him with it?"

"Because, my princess, only Demise and Hylia can touch it. It houses both their souls meaning it is the _only_ weapon that can kill them."

"So...they think I know where it is?" The stranger asks.

"For some odd reason, yes." Bruta says.

"It's not _that_ odd." He snaps.

"I only say that because the true whereabouts of this ancient sword is only known to the oracles: The singing stones of...of..." Bruta scrambles through his scrolls, muttering to himself. "Right, Raine and... oh dear..." He brings the parchment to his nose. "I can't really read this legend...or this map. Do forgive me! Both it and I are rather old."

"Here." Zelda takes it gently from him. She scrutinizes it, puzzled. I crawl over to investigate. The map is faded and the leather is peeling and flaking. I can't read it any better than Bruta. What I can see of it is an ancient map of Hyrule- the way it was in the time of prosperity: during the age before the royal family when the mythical technology functioned. So many little roads, and mechanisms pattern the forest like a web, veins of the musical ether that fueled the robots and generators. All this ancient knowledge, lost to time.

"The Stone of Raine is at Dragon Roost." Zelda points to the east- the only readable piece on the map. "Would the stone know where the Ether Sword is?"

"I don't know- it's worth a try." Bruta blusters. "It is important that Hylia finds it first."

"Since you have brought this upon us," Azrune turns to the stranger, "I am sending you and an escort to investigate the Stone of Raine."

"I will go." Zelda says. I shake my head just as Azrune shoots her a look.

"I will allow no such thing. Your place is here with your tribe!"

"No, _your_ place is here." She says back. My jaw would have dropped if it weren't for the cast. "I am a grown woman, I am a fighter, I have killed an Octorock and eaten her egg, I have wrestled a bison and severed its head. I have completed every inch of my training and painted my face with every mark of my kills. The trials are finished. I am soon to become a Chieftain's wife. And I choose the life of a warrior over child rearing. You've raised me as your son, so is it too much to ask for you to give me the same rights?" Her voice rises with all the power of an erupting volcano. I cower in awe. Bruta is halfway out of the tent. Her father gazes at her sternly, but this brow has softened.

"You must promise me you will return." He growls though I notice a waver in his voice. Zelda's face brightens as she throws her arms around him. He engulfs her in his biceps. "You are a daughter of war, and my sun of peace. Is it too much for me to ask that you bring someone to watch your back?"

Zelda points at me, still crushed in the hug.

"Him." she says. I'm stunned and I feel the heat rising in my ears.

"But he is injured." Azrune says.

"Do you doubt my healing capabilities?" Zelda pulls back and crosses her arms. I see the mountain of a man give with a sigh.

"Of course not."

Beaming Zelda gives him a peck on the cheek.

"I will write to you every week."

"Be sure you do or I will send the whole army to find you."

I am both happy and annoyed. I am riding behind Zelda holding her waist! But beside us is riding the stranger with his suggestive winks and unnecessary flexing. We travel far from home, leaving the forest that was the world of my childhood. Our childhood.

We make our way toward the mountains, aiming for the tallest that shoots up into a ring of clouds like a tower. We come to the gates at nightfall. A big burly creature greets us with a grunt. It's a goron- a real one!

"What is your business?" he growls like grinding stone.

"We wish to stay at an Inn for the night. We are travelers, just passing through."

He scrutinizes us with large purple eyes. After a moment he unlatches the gate and lets us pass.

"We'll be keeping an eye on you lot- so don't try anything funny." he threatens.

"Sheesh, talk about no sense of humour." The stranger scoffs when we aren't entirely out of ear shot.

The inn is full of gorons, all brooding and slumped. Some are gambling and smoking on pipes. It smells weird and makes me dizzy. Everything seems a little funnier than normal as we sit in the far corner, eating...weeds. The menu didn't have much else other than rock cakes..._real_ rock cakes.

"So what's the plan, sweet heart?" The stranger asks lounging back in his chair, boots on the table. I glare. Zelda gives him a dry look.

"Well first of all you need a name."

_Dolt the Annoying._ I want to say but my cast keeps me mute.

"Jack Storm crow, the great bringer of death." The stranger says with a flourish. I snort.

"What's the matter?" He shoots at me. "Is your mouth stuck?"

I pull out my dagger and flip it a few times just to show him how capable I am though mute.

"You seem more of a Maltzar to me." Zelda muses. "I'm not sure why but that is what I think when I look at you."

"Maltzar." He ponders it. "Maltzar the daring- Maltzar the mighty. Yeah I'll take it. Maltzar it is."

I roll my eyes.

Zelda changes my bandages and reapplies her special remedy made from crushed herbs.

"This will be over soon." she says as I wince. "Once we speak with Raine we'll find that sword and give it to Hylia. Then we will be home and everything will be fine."

I take her hand. It's so delicate for its roughness. I stroke the ring of her engagement to the Ordon chief's son. There is so much to say, I am bursting with words, but they are all trapped behind a painful wound. She slips her hand free and finishes up the last of the bandaging.

"It's fine." She brushes my hair out of my eyes. "Our union will bring the tribes together. It will end the disputes and we will share resources. It is for the better. The Son of Ordon isn't all that bad. I'm sure you'll like him." her smile is a half hearted twitch. "But you will always be my greatest friend." she kisses my forehead. Her lips are soft as I remember. I am burning up inside, splintering apart. I want to scream. I would if it didn't hurt so much.

_I love you Zelda! Why don't you see that?! Don't marry him I beg you! Marry me!_

"Yo!" Maltzar pokes his head in the door. Our eyes break apart and look at him. "I recommend we spoon. Zelda, you go in the middle, it'll keep you nice and cozy." he grins. I wince from accidentally clenching my jaw.

I wind up in bed next to Maltzar, both of us brooding (though neither taking the floor), door locked with Zelda enjoying the double bed in the next room. Sometimes I hate that woman.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

Kakariko is a mess. The once prosperous tribe is now in shambles. Gorons and Sheikah are everywhere, taking shelter in the burnt husks of tents. They are no longer living in the mines.

"You cannot enter here." Barks a Goron, startling me. He blocks our way to Dragon Roost.

"What is going on here?" Zelda asks.

"None of your business, wench." he snarls.

"As Princess of the Faron Tribe, I demand you tell me." She snaps back. This makes him pause.

"Why have you traveled so far?" he asks suspiciously.

"We are looking for the Stone of Raine."

"Ah." he growls. "You're wasting your time, there is no way you can see it now. I suggest you go home."

"This is important-"

"More important than the safety of my Tribe?" he cuts her off, "I will not let you pass."

"So it _is_ on the mountain, then." Maltzar says wickedly. The Goron towers over us threateningly.

"Of course it is, and so is the legendary Thunder Bird, Eldin. And if you really must know she has come down with a raging fever and has been destroying our camps and...devouring our young." Greif shows through his stern gaze.

"But I thought she was the guardian of your tribe! Why would a sickness make her change so much?" Zelda asks. The Goron shakes his head.

"All we can do is hope it will pass. Whenever we send doctors to her she goes wild and punishes us all. If we leave her alone perhaps she will as well."

"And how's that working out for you?" Maltzar asks rudely. The Goron shoots him a harsh look.

"We will leave her alone. All we need is to see Raine." Zelda says.

"Raine is in her nest." The Goron snaps. My heart falls. Zelda takes a moment to breathe.

"I am a healer. Perhaps I can help."

"No! You will kill us all!"

"From the sounds of it she is going to do that anyway. A fever must be treated. Please, let me see her." Zelda insists.

A horrible screech pierces our ears.

"GET DOWN!" The Goron pushes all three of us off our feet. Massive talons whistle passed where we were standing moments ago. Jaw throbbing I stare as the massive bird lands in the center of the camp. Screaming people and Gorons flee, desperately trying to hide their children in the tents.

The creature pivots breathing shallow and fast, it's big yellow eyes crazed and watering. It moves so fast for its size, her head swivels a full 360 degrees. It's a great Owl, with a stone mask.

It screeches, emitting smoke out of its beak. A ball of flame shoots out and scorches the cliff side.

"Now that's what I call a fever!" Maltzar says. I look at him unimpressed.

"No!" Zelda yells as the bird plucks a screaming child out of her mother's arms. It spreads its wings. Zelda is running full speed at it. Maltzar and I scramble to get up. Stave in hand Zelda grabs a hold of its claw and lifts off with it. I jump and grab her ankle.

"Wait for me!" Maltzar clobbers my waist. We fall. I struggle free of his arms only to see my Zelda bravely riding Eldin to the summit of the mountain.

"Rosie!" Hollers the mother, beside herself with hysterics.

"What kind of a handhold was that?" Maltzar snaps at me. I punch him.

"OW! What was that for?" He asks through a bleeding nose. I'm heading to the mouth of the mines.

"Wait!"

I turn. An old woman is hobbling toward me.

"Take this...I've been meaning to give it to you." she croaks as she pulls out a magnificent hand harp. It is golden and shining with its own light.

"Oh, yeah sure, let's play it a little music and it will fall fast asleep." Maltzar scoffs, pinching his nose. I elbow him. Grumbling, he gives me some space. I nod to the woman as graciously as I can, and take it from her shaking hand.

"It's for the brave lady." The old woman says. As I hold it something about it is familiar. I swear I've seen it before- held it before. I go to ask but the woman is gone.

"How useful. Now shall we?" Maltzar motions tersely. I tuck the harp away in my pouch still looking for the woman. She is nowhere in sight. We set off for the mines.

The Goron lets me pass without question. Maltzar is on my tail, I can hear him cursing.

Talk about a maze. I'm trapped with Maltzar making snide remarks and rude jokes all the way to the peek. Once I find the map it is easy enough. But all I can think about is Zelda, and that girl, Rosie. This was taking too long, they could be dead.

We come to a ladder. Screeching can be heard. I climb it quickly and peer out of the trapped door. Talons thunder past. As soon as the coast is clear, I leap out.

There is Zelda, knocking an arrow behind a charred boulder, guarding Rosie like her only child. Eldin vomits a jet of flame, turning the smoldering rock into molten orange. Dagger raised I charge and slash her nearest leg. Sparks fly, but I barely make a scratch on her scales. Her wing throws me. The landing knocks my breath out and sends the world spinning.

"Yeah? YEAH? IS THAT THE BEST YOU GOT, BITCH!?" I hear Maltzar yelling somewhere. Finally pulling in air, I drag myself toward my dagger. I look towards a screech.

Maltzar is on Eldin's face, punching one of her eyes and yanking at her mask. It won't budge and she's bucking like hay wire. Maltzar is whipped to the side and crumples out of sight. It was a miracle he stayed on that long! I have my dagger. Eldin is stalking towards me, cocking her head from side to side.

"LINK!" Zelda yells. An arrow impales one of the wings. Eldin shrieks. She turns on Zelda.

"Oh yeah baby!" Maltzar pops into view. Blood is running down his face from a gash however he is holding a massive hammer. Where he found that, I have no idea. Maltzar runs up a ramp of rock and leaps. He sails down towards Eldin raising the hammer and- SMASH! Right on the mask, he meets his mark. But he falls. The hammer rolls to me.

Mask cracked, Eldin is furious. She lunges for Maltzar and plucks him up. She shakes him like a dog with a rat to break its spine. She discards him roughly onto her pile of bones. He doesn't move. Just as she goes for Zelda I'm ready. Fighting nausea I charge, hammer in hand. A blast of flame billows out of Eldin, which Zelda barely dodges. I am running up Eldin's tail, up her spine and I'm at her head before I realize it. I swing down the hammer. The Mask spits. She rears back shrieking. I hammer it again and this time it breaks apart and falls.

The Great Owl Eldin stands there as if in shock. As I sit on her head, clinging to the feathers, I see an oozing black substance pooling on her forehead. It balloons out and slips to the ground with a splat. Eldin keels over. I jump and land hard, my knees buckling a little but I manage to run and catch my balance. Zelda peers out at the black substance, holding Rosie back protectively.

It is writhing and changing shape. It ignites and soon what lies at our feet is a small fire worm, one with a mask and ram's horns. It's two arms are clawing at the hair as its weak little body flops about. I feel sort of sorry for the little thing as it gurgles and gasps. But Zelda's face shows nothing but hate. She pulls out her stave and slams down on the fiend. It explodes like puss, splattering black stuff everywhere. Zelda kneels over the mess and begins chanting softly, waving her stave over it. I know not to interrupt her when using magic, so I go to Rosie. She is shaking and cowers from me. I kneel to her level and offer my arms. She is reluctant but eventually she scampers into my hug. I stroke her brown hair gently, offering all I the reassurance I can as a mute.

When Zelda finishes, the black substance fades away.

"Volvagia." she says. "The same curse of the ancient worm that devoured the Gorons in the Time of the Ocarina still lives in this mountain. I wonder what reawakened it?"

Eldin stirs. Zelda readies her weapon. The Great Owl gets to her feet, looking around with clear brown eyes, sane brown eyes. She stumbles to face us, holding out her injured wing gingerly.

"Thank you." Says a deep woman's voice, though her beak doesn't move. "I was infected with a worm when I refused to allow passage to the Singing Stone of Raine."

"Who did this to you?" Zelda asks, still at the ready.

"One who calls himself, Lord Ghirahim." Eldin replies.

"Did he managed to go see the Stone?" Zelda asks.

"Yes, but it is still asleep. I sense he was unsuccessful." Her feathers perk. Zelda smiles. She sheaths her stave and comes to Owl.

"Then let me heal you for your troubles."

"That would be much appreciated. I will offer you quick passage to Kakoriko for your kindness."

"Tell you what." Maltzar limps into view. "Let's go wake that damn stone before we flutter off, hmm?"

"Maltzar!" Zelda gasps with a bit more relief than I find comfortable. "How did you survive?"

He waves her off.

"Just a scratch is all."

I roll my eyes.

Rosie stays with Eldin as we go into the cavern of Raine. It glows a faint blue from the center pillar of jagged, transparent rock. It looks like a frozen geyser. Zelda places her hand on it and concentrates. After a pause she shakes her head.

"No use. It's long gone. It's very old. Only holy music can bring it back."

"So what do we do, _whistle_?" Maltzar snorts. I pull out the harp. Zelda stares.

"Where did you get that?" She asks in a serious voice I am not used to.

"Oh, that! Some old bag handed it off to us before we gallivanted after you. She says she's been hanging on to it for you."

Zelda seems to ignore him as she takes it into her hands. I suddenly see her wearing a pink dress with a golden chain belt. Then it's done like a forgotten dream. Zelda holds it on her hip, positioning her hands on the strings. I then envision her with wrappings, her face half hidden with a red eye painted on her chest, shedding a tear. Why I am seeing her wearing different outfits right now, puzzles me.

She begins to strum. I close my eyes and fall into a rapture. The notes glide, and dance, plucking out memories of a time lost and stroking the strings of my heart.

"Dude!" Maltzar breathes interrupting my visions of Zelda disrobing herself. I look to see that the stone is glowing, throbbing. A harmony like wind chimes cascade through the cavern. Light, patterned as if through water, flutter in nets across the walls.

Zelda finishes the song but the stone continues to sing.

Through the music an ethereal voice speaks, neither male nor female:

_"You have a question to ask of me,_

_Ask it now and I will set you free._

_Dally not for my time is short_

_For my place is in Hylia's court"_

"My name is Zelda Faron. And I've come to ask you where I can find The Ether Sword of Good and Evil."

There is a pause, where I hold my breath.

_"__The blade you seek,_

_Is neither mild nor meek,_

_It burns with flame,_

_Which only Gods can tame._

_Where it is to be found,_

_I cannot say._

_But the answer does lie_

_With the stone of Elray"_

Suddenly a beam of light shoots out and constructs a three dimensional map of Hyrule. It is blue but for one golden star gleaming in the west, the opposite side of the map from us.

"What- you mean we have to go all the way _there?"_ Maltzar asks. The stone doesn't answer. Zelda takes the map I pull out and marks it down.

"Thank you, Raine." She bows. The map disappears as does the music and light. She turns to us and sighs. "To the desert."


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

"There," Says Zelda, finished my jaw cast. "The bones are healed but its delicate. I don't want you talking for at least another day, okay Link?"

I nod, disappointed. I'm tired of being silent.

"Few, you had me worried there." Says Maltzar poking at the fire. I glare and he smirks at me. "So how much longer to the desert, eh?"

"A day if we move without breaks." Zelda says, laying out the skins for our beds.

"Right then." Maltzar rises. "I'm going out to hunt, I'm sick of this dried fruit crap." he throws his half-eaten fig in the flames.

"There will be time for that in the desert." Zelda says.

"We'll I'm hungry now." Maltzar sets off in the woods. Zelda glares after him.

"Go with him. I'll mind the camp." She says to me. I want to protest but have no means of getting her attention. She ignores my complaining gestures until I give up. Pulling out my dagger I set off. His bright red hair is easy to find even at dusk. How on earth does he think he'll get a catch?

He crouches by a log. I stand by him and glare.

"What?" he asks without looking at me. "Oh that's right you can't talk." He adds snidely. I leap on him. We wrestle. I'm pinned.

"What's your problem?" He snaps. "I'm just getting you food. You think I'd horde it all to myself?"

I nod. He rolls his eyes.

"Such little faith in me. Look," He sighs. "I understand I'm nothing but a thorn in your side. But we need to start watching each other's backs. No matter how much we hate each other." he flicks my forehead. I struggle. "I realize I deserved that punch." He adds making me stop. "I've been nothing but a nuisance. I brought this down on you. So is it too much for me to ask that I at least try and make it up to you?" He has an earnest glint in his green eyes, one that I never thought I'd see. I don't trust him, but he does have a point. I tense. Someone is creeping up on Maltzar.

"Oh come on, it can't be that difficult."

I struggle, nodding behind his shoulder, fear in my eyes. Maltzar's expression changes. He turns too late. A club to the head knocks him out cold. I leap up only to be tackled by four men. They bind my legs and arms tightly and put a bag over my head. I twist and struggle, but there is nothing I can do. I'm slung over someone's shoulder and they run off into the forest.

After a bumpy ride full of struggles and muffled yells, I'm dropped suddenly to the ground. The bag is removed. I am at Lord Ghirahim's feet. I glare. He doesn't look pleased.

"Who is this?!" He snaps. "A peasant hunter? I asked for the Princess!"

"He was with the Sword Hunter." One of the men answer. Ghirahim raises his absence of eyebrows.

"And where is he?"

With a thump, Maltzar's unconscious body lands beside me.

"You killed him?" Ghirahim seethes.

"He is merely unconscious, my lord." The man says quickly.

"Brilliant." Ghirahim scoffs. "It will take hours for him to awaken." His malicious eyes turn on me." I ready for the worse. He swoops down and tears off my cast. I wince, trying to keep my jaw in place.

"Speak!" Ghirahim orders, "Where is Princess Zelda?"

I glare. He raises his hand to strike but pauses. His eyes pierce into me as if discovering something intriguing.

"Tell me your name."

My lips remain closed.

"So silent." he breathes. "So innocent." His hand comes to stroke my jaw. The cold touch sends shivers of loathing through me. "That face...can it be?" Recognition crosses his features. He seizes my throat and lifts me to his eye level. My feet are dangling.

"You're her wretched lap dog aren't you?" he cackles. "Finally I can have my revenge on you." I squirm as he brings our faces uncomfortably close. "And don't think it will be a quick death." he whispers, squeezing my neck. Black spots litter my vision. An arrow cuts his cheek. He drops me. I struggle for air. Zelda has come to my rescue. Stave in hand she takes on the men beating them to their hands and knees.

"Ah, you're highness." Ghirahim sneers. With a snap of his fingers he appears behind her. Grabbing her stave he chokes her up against his body with it. "I have a few questions if I may." His long tongue, snakes out and runs up her cheek.

"STAY AWAY FROM HER!" I yell with a rasp.

"He speaks! How cute. You are a man of few words aren't you, Link?"

I stare. How did he know my name?

"And I'm a man of many!" Maltzar springs up and grabs the stave, fighting to free Zelda. "Mother-fucking, cock-sucking, back-birthed... WHORE!"

Zelda kicks Ghirahim's knee. He stumbles and she falls into Maltzar's arms. He whisks her up like a hero. I am relieved but I fume inside. With an unimpressed expression, Ghirahim snaps his fingers. The two are blasted apart and thrown to the ground. He grabs Zelda by the hair and holds a black sword to her throat. Maltzar leaps to his feet with a snarl but stops.

"Tell me, Sword Hunter, where is the Ether Blade?" He growls.

"So I'm a Sword Hunter, eh? Cool." Maltzar shrugs. "Didn't know that since I have AMESIA." He shouts. "Do you really think, threatening her life is going to bring back my memories? Fat chance."

Groggy men clobber him. He struggles but they are too many.

"I'll deal with you later." Ghirahim sneers. "Zelda and I are going to have a little one on one."

"NO!" I shout as I'm hauled away. "ZELDA! ZELDA!"

Her face is calm as stone and pale as marble. She shows no fear.

Maltzar and I are tied back to back around the center pole of the tent. We do not speak to each other. For long...

"Can you reach the knots?" Maltzar whispers.

"No. And they took my dagger." I say before he can ask. Silence. I hear a scream.

"ZELDA!" I struggle.

"Now- now keep it together-"

More screaming.

"ZELDA, ZELDA, ZELDA!"

"AAHHSHHHHHH!" Maltzar turns back to me. "That isn't going to help. Save your breath!"

"For what?" My voice cracks.

"For singing."

"WHAT?"

"SHHHHHHHH! Keep it down!" Maltzar snaps. "You know the legends of Hyrule, don't you Link? That it was first created with music, Hylia's music and if you play the right tune you hold creation in your hands."

"Yeah but you need the sacred instruments!" I hiss.

"What do you call that." He nods to harp in the corner.

"Like we can reach that." I laugh coldly.

"We don't have you. If we listen we can hear the melody it is already playing." Maltzar says.

"By itself?"

"Everything has its own song- and you control anything with those songs. You just need to listen for it. So be quiet." He scolds. I hold very still. I'm shaking. I can hear her screams again, what is Ghirahim doing to her? My insides writhe with thoughts of the worst.

Maltzar begins to hum, in a deep melodious voice. It glides like the mournful west winds of decay and death. It has a sound like the gradual profound flow of time. It multiplies like many voices all around us. Old voices, lost voices. I tentatively join the canticle. I jump when a harp string sounds. I sing again and the harp follows my voice- the strings are my voice.

Then all the plants in the tent wither, the supports become worm infested and rotten, and the ropes around us dry and flake away in the wind. The music dies and we were free. I leap to my feet and grab the harp. I hold it up to the light trying to figure it out.

"You learned the Song of Nocturne of Shadow." Says Maltzar, "The Song of Death."

"I thought you had no memory." I say suspiciously. Maltzar dusts himself off with a shrug.

"What can I say, I didn't forget everything."

We sneak through the camp following Zelda's cries. We come to the main tent. With my dagger I cut a slit in the side and we charge in.

"What did the stone of Raine say! Where is the sword?!" Ghirahim questioned as a man with a three tailed whip winds back. Maltzar clobbers him. I punch Ghirahim and free Zelda. The man falls dead at Maltzar's feet. Blood drips from the Megaton Hammer he found at Dragon Roost.

Ghirahim grabs my hair and holds his blade to my throat.

"Meddling wretch!" he snarls.

"Put him down, Ghiraher." Maltzar growls.

"Not until you tell me where the Ether Sword is." He sneers.

"You wanna know?" Maltzar steps forward. He drops his hammer and holds up his hands. "Okay, you win I'll tell you."

"Maltzar, no." Zelda begs. I seethe inside.

"It's right where you left it." Maltzar says. "In the outer islands."

Ghirahim smirks.

"There's a good boy."

He cuts open my throat.

"LINK!"

I don't feel the floor when I fall.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

I can't open my eyes. I am suspended in space, relaxed and waiting. I feel a hand on my forehead, a soft one.

"Mother?" I breathe.

"Everyone seems to call me that." Laughs a sweet and kind voice.

"But we cannot take this one." A deep and clear voice says.

"No, he has far too much to fulfill. He cannot live with us now." comes a stern voice.

"Oh but he's so peaceful. Can't we spare him the return to that awful place?" asks the sweet one.

"It will continue to be awful unless he is there to do something about it. You know full well he is the Chosen of Hylia." Says the stern one.

"The Curse effects him too, it would only be a temporary stay even if we took him in." says the clear voice

"As you wish, Nayru and Din." Soft lips press to my forehead. I land on the ground and I gasp.

Zelda is over me, hand over my throat, her face stained with tears, praying. Shock then relief crosses her expression before she throws her arms around me.

"Thank the Goddesses!" She sobs, "Thank Hylia!"

"Fuck." Maltzar breathes. We are in the enemies tent. I am lying in a pool of blood. I'm dazed. I don't quite remember what happened. But I recall the cold feeling of a blade biting my flesh. I feel my throat. There is a large scab where the gaping wound used to be.

"Now I know they're real!" Maltzar sighs, a little dazed himself. Zelda kisses me. I'm so stunned I lie still beneath her.

"I thought I lost you." She hick ups. I stare at her like I've never seen her before. So dishevelled, so human.

"Might I remind you we are still in the enemy's camp. Ghirahim may have left but I don't think they all went with him." Maltzar says, though his usual sardonic voice is shaking a little. I remember the exchange. What Maltzar said to Ghirahim. I get to my feet and come at him, furious. I shove him to the ground.

"Hey- what the-"

"You knew the whole time!?" I fume. "And you told him where the sword was?"

"Link." Zelda catches my shoulder. "It was a decoy. He saved our lives. As for yours the Goddesses healed you, through me."

I do not trust Maltzar. I am still angry at him. But I relax, taking Zelda's hand.

"Let's get out of here."

We sneak out of the camp with ease. Ghirahim's men don't have much for brains. There was a scuffle or two but the three of us make a good team. In no time we are on our way to the desert.

That night I help Zelda nurse the lacerations on her back while she sows her clothes back together. They were ripped open for easy access. Maltzar is out hunting.

"I love you." I say. Zelda turns to me.

"Link, we can't." she says, grief lining her beautiful face. "It is my duty to unite the clans. I must marry Decoda, Ordon's Son."

It is hard for me to hold back tears.

"But those times, in the forest- did they- did they mean nothing to you?"

"Of course not!" She hisses almost angry. "I love you with all my heart- always have!"

"Then forget the clans!" I snap. But Zelda shakes her head.

"Once Hylia has defeated Demise, all will go back to the way it was. The Tribes of Faron and Ordon will continue to feud unless a peace treaty is met. Decoda asked for my hand so I must-"

"I will find another way!" I say. "I will find a way to make peace. Anything! Anything they want. I will find precious stones from the outer islands! I will hunt and give half of every catch to them. I will be their slave if only they break the engagement!"

Zelda smiles at me. The first I've seen in a long while. She kisses me. This time I kiss back.

"I love you." She says. I kiss every inch of her face. She laughs trying to escape me. I trap her and snuffle in her hear and bite it like a pup. "You lunatic!" She giggles and squirms.

"Might I interrupt." Maltzar says dryly as he throws down a stag from his shoulder.

"Wow, that is impressive." Zelda says, eyeing our meal.

"Did you expect any less?" Maltzar teases though he flashes me a murderous look behind his smile.

We come to the web of rope bridges over Lanayru chasm. Something dark is patrolling it. We pause. He is a horseman, on a red chestnut steed. A war horse with a white mane. The rider is wearing black fur with a long ax in hand.

"What are they doing here?" Zelda hisses.

"Who is it?" I ask.

"He must be from the Dragaun Clan. Their trade mark is the ax." She says.

"As far as I'm concerned we don't have the capabilities to take on this guy." Maltzar says.

"So you say we run?" I accuse him. He glares.

"Let's just see if we can negotiate." Zelda says stepping forward.

"NO! He'll lob your head off!" I hold her back. She pushes me off and draws back her bow.

"That's negotiating?" Maltzar laughs.

"You there." Zelda calls, advancing on the bridge, her arrow ready. "What business do you have here?"

He draws his horse to a halt.

"I am the guardian of my home land." He says in a young husky voice. A little like mine.

"Speak the truth! The Dragauns own the main lands, not the desert." Zelda scoffs.

"I am the desert." He says back with deadly calm.

"Did he just say he is a piece of land?" Maltzar asks.

"I own everything and everyone that enters it." He says.

"Will you let us pass?" Zelda asks.

"Of course." He says.

"But will you let us out?" I ask.

"No."

"Well then you'll have a fight waiting for you." Maltzar says.

"That is if you survive." He says coolly.

"Survive what?" Maltzar snaps.

"The Twilit Wastelands, of course: My kingdom."

"And what if we kill you now, eh?" Maltzar says.

"Only the heart of my land has that power." He chuckles. I exchange a look with Zelda.

"Don't doubt it." she says lowering her arrow. "We will return and with that power."

"Then enter if you dare." He steers his horse aside.

As we pass, his horse nuzzles my face. I look up and see my own face staring down at me, with deep red eyes.


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

"We will be seeing strange things from now on," Zelda says.

"Like red eyed-doppelgangers?" Maltzar asks. "Or was that Link's evil twin?"

"Both." Zelda turns to us. "Do you know what this is?" She points to the barrier to the desert. It is a black wall with many golden designs glowing across it. It hums deeply. Before we approached it, I thought it was a sunset. But it changed on closer encounter. The stories from Bruta are true. The mirage walls of dusk do exist.

"It's Twilight," I say.

"Very good, Link." Zelda nods. "At least you stay awake sometimes."

I feel heat around my ears.

"Each and every one of us has a dark side," Zelda says. "This realm of shadows can make them manifest in flesh. So yes, the guardian of the desert is Link's evil twin. It will not be an easy fight. Link is skilled and he will share his abilities."

I look back at my dark twin. His steed is standing in the center of the rope bridge, eyeing us closely but not advancing. He's waiting for something.

"So how do we get in?" Maltzar snaps. We walk into the wall's shadow. Zelda turns to us again, holding us back.

"I understand what the Guardian means. If we are to survive this, we are to return the light to the Desert Spirit. Otherwise we will be trapped as ghosts in shadows. Are you two ready for this?"

"Ready as you'll ever be," Maltzar gloats.

"I'm going with you," I say. Zelda smiles.

"This trial will not be for the faint of heart."

She pivots and reaches for the wall.

"Do you see a door?" Maltzar scoffs to me. Just as he finishes two great black arms shoot out and grab the three of us. We are pulled into the cold air of dusk. The wet sand hits us and we lie at the feet of a giant beast. It is shaped like a gorilla with all the likeness of a spider. Its arms are longer than its legs and its fingers are spindly. A flat mask is its face with no eyes. A mane of writhing tentacles lines it from all sides.

I pull out my dagger and I leap to strike but my knees give out. My body is shaking; I'm having a seizure! Hot pain shoots through me. My scream turns into a howl and all goes black.

Maltzar:

I'm on my back breathing hard. Now that hurt...a lot. I sit up. The world seems bigger than last I looked. Dude, there are more beasties! I get to my feet and...I'm short. Really short. I look down to find little black hands. I'm naked and covered in teal markings. I reach up and feel bat-like ears.

"I'M A FUCKING IMP!" I yell. My voice is smaller, reedier. I'm easily plucked up by one of the beasts. It seems to be looking at me...with no eyes. "Hold me a little closer and I'll really give you something to look at!" I flail my little fists, but really with a voice like this I might as well be on helium. The other beasts are examining the creatures on the ground. There is a wolf and a giant red bird. Where did Link and Zelda go? I freeze with realization. It's them and they are both unconscious. The beasties begin to drag them away. I struggle madly as I'm carried along.

We come to a great palace: a ziggurat made of obsidian stone. Blood red markings maze all over it. They glow too. Cool.

"Listen you blind, octo-faced bastard! I'm warning you. Any harm to them and you're dead meat!" I squirm.

The great bird which I think is Zelda is put in a cage and slung up before the gates of the castle like a crude ornament. Link is put in an enclosed pen. But they hold on to me.

A man steps out of the palace, gliding gracefully like a snake. His neck is a little too long for my liking. In sandals of gold and serpent-scaled armor, he is fit to be the king. Well, he just might be. I glare as he approaches. He cocks his head and gazes at me with glowing orange eyes.

"You have done well," he purrs to my captors. "You surrender to me Hylia and her Chosen."

My jaw drops.

"No, really? Them? The dog doesn't know enough tricks and the bird is, well, bird-brained! No, we're just passing by. What makes you think that?" I laugh.

"And who is this little child?" he asks.

"I'm not a child and I am of no concern to you," I snap. My captor easily raises me to the king-guy's eye level.

"Then you are indeed an intruder. But how is it that you bear our shape?" he hisses.

"Don't ask me. You're the boss, aren't you?" I turn elsewhere. His breath isn't exactly all roses.

His long finger comes under my chin.

"You must be the Sword Hunter."

"At your service, my liege!" I sneer and spit in his face. He wipes it away calmly.

"Kill him."

I'm thrown to the ground.

"Let Lord Ghirahim know that we have found his runaways," the king-guy says as he leaves me to my doom.

Link:

I wake to the sounds of yells and snarls. My head hurts. I get to my hands and feet and...realize they are paws. I turn in a circle and find I'm a creature- a wolf. I'm inside a pen. What on earth is going on? I look again toward the screams. Through the bars I see a scuffle amongst a number of beasts, same as the one I saw before. They are trying to get their hands on a little child. But on closer look, I see it looks more like a fiend, with big yellow eyes and blood red irises and jet black skin. Teal designs glow on him in grids and swirls. He gnashes his needle sharp teeth, his bat-like ears angled back like horns. He is losing the battle. The beasts are toying with him.

I'm confused for a moment until I realize I recognize something about him. The spiky mess of red hair and the green head band that trails down the length of his foreshortened body.

"Maltzar?" I woof. He is picked up by the throat and thrown down. The little Maltzar imp coughs and scrambles back. He is hit again and sent rolling and skidding. They are kicking him and clawing at him, growing more and more violent. I see the terror in Maltzar's eyes. I've seen enough. I sniff around the edge of my pen until I find a soft patch. I dig underneath and wriggle out. I charge. Two have Maltzar's arms, the others his legs. They are pulling, fighting over him like he is their last meal. Not if I can help it!

I jump on the nearest and tear out its throat. I go wild, snarling and jumping from one to the next, ripping off whatever limbs present themselves. Wounded and groaning, the beasts run. I howl after them, my hackles raised, to make sure they really don't think of coming back.

"Keep it down, will you!" says the little Maltzar. His voice is so cute! "You don't want to give away our position!" He's on the ground. I use my snout to help him up. He looks at me like he wants to hit me. "Thanks," he mutters out of the corner of his mouth. I huff softly in reply. As much as I dislike Maltzar, he's too adorable to hate. "So. Seeing as I can talk, I'm in charge," he declares. The hate is returning. I growl. "Oh, shut up. We gotta save your blushing bride-to-be." Maltzar sneers, hopping onto my back. I try bucking him off. He yanks my fur until I subside. "Good boy." He flicks my head. Why does this seem so familiar?

As much as I hate him, he's right. With such small legs he'd never keep up. We set off into the castle. It is a treacherous maze full of enemies and traps. Why there are a bunch of crunchy, choppy things in the middle of a castle, beats me.

"Left, right- no that one! Stay! Good boy!"

"Shut up!" I try to say but only a growl comes out. Maltzar giggles fiendishly. We finally find our way to the terrace. There is Zelda, her sharp beak pecking and gnawing at the bars. She screeches at us defensively. What a set of lungs she has, I'm nearly deafened.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, baby girl!" Maltzar holds up his hands. "It's us- your old pals!"

She cocks her head confused.

"And this is where your journey ends," comes a soft voice. We turn. This long-necked man with orange eyes steps toward us.

"You wish," Maltzar says, standing on my back. "I won't give you that satisfaction."

The man chuckles thinly.

"You fools. You do not have the means of defeating me."

Maltzar is lifted off my back by an invisible force.

"I have received a warrant for your arrest, Sword Hunter. Lying to Lord Ghirahim will indeed be a great punishment." A thin smile shapes his lips.

"Link," I hear Zelda's voice in my head. "Break that rope."

I look over my shoulder to see the tether to her cage.

"But you'll fall," I think back.

"Do it," she orders, her stormy blue eyes glaring at me. Without hesitation I tear into it with my teeth. Before the man can react, Zelda falls out of sight.

I am lifted off my feet. I am turned toward the man and he his furious. I feel something pierce my side. A whining sound escapes me as I fight to pull away as it is pushed in deeper and deeper. I can't breathe. One of my lungs has collapsed.

Zelda soars up, fury in her eyes. She swoops in and grabs both me and Maltzar with her talons and flies away.

"Know that I am Zant, the King of Shadows. I will find you Hylia!" he calls after us.


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

Zelda sets me down on the sand. I'm gasping shallowly. It hurts every time.

"What's wrong with him?" Maltzar asks. Zelda inspects me with her beak. I feel something hot melting into my ribs.

"Crystallized Twilight!" Zelda's voice rings clear in my mind. "We must find the tears of light or he will be trapped in this realm forever." The heat dies and I gasp. I can breathe again. But I feel strange, empty and cold. My fur has darkened. "He will become one with his dark half. There is limited time."

"And how do we even begin looking for these tears of light?" Maltzar scoffs.

"If legends are correct, they have been consumed by Twilight insects. We must collect their blood in a vassal which the dying Light Spirit will give us." Zelda says.

We set off towards the Oasis where the Desert Light Spirit lies. A string of crystal beads like a vine is floating in the water. Maltzar happily retrieves it and wears it as a sash. We are ready for the hunt.

It is long and difficult. These insects are the size of cats and not at all easy to crush. About half way through I find myself consumed with anger. I feel this intense thirst for blood. I feel irritated like anything could set me off. It frightens me.

By the time we finish I have Maltzar cornered. It is so easy to hate him. So easy to kill him.

"Whoa, hey there, Skippy." He backs away from me into the boulder. "What's up your rectum?"

My lips pull back in a growl.

"Link, what are you doing?" Comes Zelda's voice. I stop.

"I don't know."

"Hurry, Lanayru is the only one that can help."

"Sheesh!" Says Maltzar. "Get a grip! We're almost done."

I shake myself as if wet. Maltzar is not making this easy for me.

We return to the Oasis and Maltzar sets the vessel in the water. It floats to the center and the water ignites with light. Dusk turns to dawn around us and the flecks of shadow in the air dissolve. A great serpent rears out of the water, glowing white as the desert sun. A hood fans out. She's a cobra. Zelda and Maltzar glow with her light as they form back into their human selves. I'm left out. I'm still a wolf.

"Thank you, Hylia and her Chosen," Lanayru says in a hissing but deeply melodic voice. My jaw drops. Did I hear correctly? "I am ever in your service, Hylia." Lanayru bows to Zelda.

"I'm sorry?" she asks.

"You are the Goddess born again in flesh." Lanayru answers. Zelda sits down. She looks stunned and almost like she was going to cry. I go to her and place a paw on her shoulder. My wet nose touches her cheek and I lick her ear. But she ignores me.

"That doesn't make sense." She argues. "I am not the creator! I'm far too naive, I'm just a girl."

"Yeah, a girl that can fight better than the two of us combined." Maltzar laughs. I snarl at him, telling him to speak for himself.

"It may take time for you to understand and believe in your destiny." Lanayru says. "But the Ether Blade is yours to wield. And your chosen one, Link is the keeper of the Master Sword."

"But I don't feel God-like!" Zelda says. "I don't remember any past lives!"

"Your memory will return slowly as you meet with the Singing Stones. But for now, your chosen is gravely ill." She turns her diamond eyes to me, "Link, I am only able to subdue the effects of the Twilight shard in your heart. The only thing that can cure you is the Master Sword, the pure blade of evil's bane. And only then will you defeat the King of Shadows."

"Hey, what about the Stone of Elray? Isn't there enough time to pay it a visit?" Maltzar asks.

"Zant has possession of the stone." Says Lanayru.

"Figures." Maltzar tosses up a hand, unimpressed.

"You will find the Master Sword in the Sacred Grove within the Lost Woods."

"That is near Faron!" Zelda gasps.

We are going home.

At the bridge we meet Dark Link. He is not at all happy that his world of Twilight has now diminished. Without hesitation, he charges.

Zelda draws her bow. I ready myself. Maltzar runs at him. Dark Link swings his axe. Maltzar catches the handle and is dragged by the horse. But he doesn't let go. What a weird guy. Well at least he eventually disarmed him, even though he was left in the dust splintered and bruised. Zelda's arrow flies. He blocks it with his shield. I spring up over the neck of his steed and tackle him. We fall. The landing knocks the breath out of me, but I still twist around and sink my teeth into his shoulder. He doesn't make a sound. He grabs me and we wrestle. My fangs snap inches from his face. Maltzar and Zelda advance, but suddenly they are blocked by black figures. There are duplicates of him. They attack.

He slams me into the bridge and begins choking me.

"You and I will become one." he whispers to me. "It is only a matter of time. Why fight it?"

I struggle.

"LINK!" Zelda yells, battling the other Dark Links wildly with her stave. I claw him off and bite his leg. He kicks me, and I don't let go. His blood tastes like tar but I still clamp my jaws. I hear the unsheathing of a dagger. I jump back and get a slash on the snout.

I circle him, growling.

"My soul is consuming yours, Link. Soon there will be nothing left of you but me."

"Wanna bet?" Maltzar flies in out of nowhere and smashes him off his feet with the megaton hammer. I take my chance and rip out his throat with my teeth. As he lies bleeding out, he smiles at me.

"Soon." he mouths. Consumed with a wave of anger, I grab his neck and shake him until it breaks.

I feel a hand on my back. I turn and snap at it. Zelda draws back. I freeze. There is blood running down her wrist.

"Fuck what was that for?!" Maltzar raises the hammer, but Zelda touches his side giving him pause.

"There really is not much time." She says. I whine an apology and she pets my head. "Just keep fighting, you'll be fine." she soothes.

The Lost Woods. It's located to the west. Our Tribes avoid it. Many believe it to be enchanted and to change and mirror itself so that any wondering traveler would be trapped in it forever. I sure hope that doesn't happen to us. Even though I think it already has.

"Great. Every fucking tree looks the fucking same!" Maltzar slumps down. "Hell, even this rock hasn't changed!"

"There has to be a pattern to it." Zelda says.

"Pattern? We might as well be in a maze! A random one at that!"

I catch a scent. I woof and follow it.

"Oh not this again." Maltzar complains as he and Zelda trail after me.

I lead them to a clearing. An ancient structure used to stand here. I freeze. Someone is standing on a rock. It's a child wearing rags and a straw hat.

"Who are you?" Zelda asks. He doesn't answer. He lifts an instrument to his lips and begins to play. It is an upbeat song, one full of life and the forest. I recognize it from a forgotten dream.

"Does anyone find this strange?" Maltzar asks. "Hey, who are you." He yells stepping forward.

"Maltzar, don't," Zelda grabs his arm.

"Why not?" He snaps.

"That is a Skull Kid, a soul that has been lost to the forest. They are mischievous creatures: one moment they are your friend the next your enemy. We must play his game. Perhaps he knows where the Sacred Grove is." She pulls out the golden harp. Her hand trembles above the strings.

"I've played this harp before haven't I?" she whispers, more to herself than anyone. She begins to play the Skull Kid's Song. I suddenly remember laughter, from a particular girl. Little caring arms that held me as a young child. Green hair, blue eyes and a caring smile. My eyes feel watery.

When Zelda finishes the joyful tune, the Skull kid giggles and runs off. We follow him into another clearing.

This time he plays an elegant song, light and very much a waltz. Zelda joins him playing by ear. Again I see her in wrappings, with a hidden face and that mark, the tearful eye of the Sheikah on her chest. These little memories that aren't mine scare me a little. Am I really the legendary hero? I haven't fending for myself very well. My fur droops.

Again Skull kid leads us and plays a new song, a more intricate one: elated and courageous. But he doesn't stop moving down the path as he plays, we have to follow while Zelda fumbles with the strings. I remember someone dancing to this song...up a wall? How did she manage that? Maybe this was a dream? I was playing the harp.

Zelda hits a sour note. Skull Kid stops. Yellow eyes glare at us. He takes a deep breath and blows on his reedy instrument. Wood puppets without strings fall from the trees and enclose us. They smile at us with sharp teeth and gleaming eyes. They attack, swinging their arms like clubs. We battle as hard as we can, but there are too many. And being made of wood, they keep coming back to life, no matter how many limbs were missing. They were like zombies!

Maltzar swings the megaton hammer as hard as he could. Zelda wields her stave and I chew off any parts that come my way. But it is a losing battle. Just then I smell someone approaching. I turn in time to see a blue figure streaking past us. With one kick, Skull Kid is down. The Puppets fall dead. Skull Kid cowers before an elegant creature. She has blue hair, cut short around her head. Black stockings with teal netting adorn her well shaped legs. Two draperies one of purple the other of blue flow over her arms and she wears a short fitted purple dress.

"Get out of here." She commands, stepping towards him with her lethal black heals. He scurries away immediately. "And take your toys with you." She shouts after him in a clear chiming voice. The puppets spring up and flee. She turns to us.

"Well hello," she smiles. What a face: so innocent yet strong. Beautiful is an understatement: she is like a white porcelain doll with big blue eyes that glitter like the ethereal gem on her chest. Her lips are full and painted a matching purple to her suit. "What brings you to my forest?" She gestures like a dancer. "It is dangerous here, let me show you out."

"Wait." Zelda says. "We thank you for helping, but we've come here for a reason."

"Oh?" She looks at us suddenly sceptical. "Which is?"

"We are looking for the Sacred Grove."

"Why?" she cocks her head. I feel her energy grow cold.

"We need to see the Master Sword." Zelda says. I notice Maltzar is awfully quiet. I look over to find him staring at the girl, a sort of dazed look on his face.

She lifts an eyebrow at him. He swallows. She turns.

"This way."

Maltzar trips over a stick and curses softly. I snort. But I notice Zelda's hand is on her stave. She does not seem to trust our new guide.

She brings us to the run down ruins of a once great temple. It is very ancient and covered with vines. Inside is a cathedral sheltered by trees. Once we enter we find she is nowhere to be seen. Ahead of us is a pedestal. It is empty. A boulder rolls in front of the door. We are trapped.


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9

"You say you need the Master Sword. What for?" The girl's voice echoes through the temple.

"We need it because of him." Maltzar points to me.

"Who are you?"

"My name is Zelda Faron, and I have come here for my friend, Link. He is sick."

"Who do you serve?"

"Hylia. I _am_ Hylia." Zelda says though I see with difficulty.

"That's blasphemy." The voice says calmly.

"Then fight me and let me prove it!" Zelda yells.

"Agreed!" In a splash of gems the girl reappears at the pedestal. Zelda steps forward.

"Wait!" Maltzar snatches at her but is blocked by a transparent wall of teal and purple gems. I bark snapping at it, but it won't break.

The two women charge. They block and dodge as if in a dance. Zelda uses her stave with grace while the girl kicks. She's a contortionist! She slips out of any lock and uses only her legs. She is a mesmerizing graceful acrobatic, using her scarves to distract and deflect.

"Hey, I never got your name!" Maltzar prowls around the enclosure, his green eyes on the girl.

"And why would you need it?" she asks a little annoyed.

"Because you're cute." He purrs. She gives him an irksome glance before ducking Zelda's stave. "Oh and did I mention you have a great body, you're curves are just-" He trails off, his hands tracing the air hungrily.

"Stop it!" Both She and Zelda snap. Maltzar laughs fiendishly.

"What it's the truth." He lounges against the wall, peering in. "I like girls with a good kick."

"You're next." She says sharply.

"Oh goodie!" Maltzar squirms sensually with delight. I want to smack him. Here I am racing around, trying to find a way in to save my Zelda and he's just sitting back and enjoying the show- enjoying the enemy. Which side is this guy on?

Finally the women break apart. Glowering, the nameless one steps back onto the pedestal.

"You're fight is worth my time." She bows her head, though not at all pleased. Zelda stands ready and panting. "Accept my final test." She opens her arms, the blue and purple draperies hanging down. A beam of intense light shoots out of the crystal on her chest. I leap against the wall trying to get to Zelda. She jumps out of the way and the beam hits me.

The ground strikes suddenly and the sky slips beneath me. I feel warmth melt all my muscles. Like silk it wraps around my heart and squeezes tightly until I feel an icicle worm its way out and through my ribs. It hits the floor and I breathe.

"LINK!" Zelda throws herself on me.

"Ow, ow easy." I wince. I blink. I am human?

"Whoa...do that again!" Maltzar laughs. The girl is still standing on the pedestal, staring at me. I don't understand her expression, it is one of shock and worship. I noticed my clothes have changed: I am wearing a green tunic with chainmail and a pointed, long cap. Buckles and strapping's I didn't know existed, adorn me! I am wearing the ancient garb the knights wore in the glory days.

The girl falls to her knees and bows.

"Master." she says.

"Wait what?" Maltzar looks between us. I get to my feet.

"Who are you?" I ask.

"I am Fi, the Master Sword. Forgive me! I did not recognize you." A tear falls from her eye.

"Fi..." I breathe as I come toward her. She is so familiar. I lift her chin. "Of course I forgive you. You saved my life...many times."

She smiles. I remember following that smile, through a city in the sky, following her through the night as she lead me to a secret temple where her blade lay. We were so different then.

"Fi." I hug her. "How did you-? Why are you-?" I look her up and down.

"I know I said I would be in an eternal sleep when we last talked. But times have changed. Both Ghirahim and I have heard our masters' call. I've been guarding this forest from his minions. He has sent so many. Forgive me Hylia."

"Please, call me Zelda." she insists awkwardly.

"There have been so many imposters, I couldn't trust anyone." Fi turns to me and smiles. "But it's really you." She kisses my cheek. "Come, let's make ribbons of our enemies!" she smiles wickedly, stepping back on the pedestal. "Raise your hand, Master. Command me to your service."

"You're a sword. You're a _sword_?" Maltzar finally speaks up, totally at a loss. She cocks her eyebrow at him again.

"So? Am I any less cute?" She asks teasingly. Maltzar laughs, amused and intrigued.

"You've become more...human." I say. "You didn't understand emotion." I can remember the perfect way she spoke with clipped tones and straight face. Totally natural to everything.

"Well of course, Master. Every sword with a spirit has a human form. I used mine to protect myself and I learned a lot about feelings." Her eyes flit to Maltzar. A crooked grin lights his face. She turns to me fervently.

"Master, take me."

"Oh I'll take you." Maltzar murmurs. All eyes turn on him. "I mean," he coughs, "Go right ahead, Link."

I raise my hand. I remember watching someone do this once, some one big and dark. Fi is lifted off her feet with angelic light. She opens her arms and closes her eyes. A blue mist, bright as dawn, condenses around the crystal on her chest. The gem opens up and a purple hilt emerges. I watch in awe as an entire blade slides out of her rib cage and glides into my outstretched hand. Fi dissolves into sparkles and they rush into the sword adding to its glow. Maltzar peers over my shoulder at it.

"Does she ever...come out again?" He sounds a little sad.

"Of course I do." Fi laughs, flipping out of the sword with a flash. She hovers in her spirit form. Her arms are gone, replaced by the purple and blue drapes and her skin has gone a shiny blue like her hair. Is it just me or is Maltzar blushing?

"You look weird." He scoffs defensively.

"Well so would you if you were a sword spirit." She says simply.

"...what's it like in there?" He asks after a pause, eyeing her intensely. Fi glides toward him.

"Like a dream. You are aware of everything, yet you see nothing. You feel the warmth of the sheath and you can feel your master's hand grip you hard. You breathe the wind with every swing and you taste the blood of every foe. They come in different flavours." She is leaning toward Maltzar now. He is stationary and stunned, his lips slightly parted. Are they going to kiss? I clear my throat. Fi flips back into the sword and I sheath her protectively.

"Well, Link. You certainly attract some fine ladies." Maltzar smoothes back his red hair.

"Enough of this." Zelda steps in. "We must hurry to the desert and defeat Zant. The Stone of Elray is waiting for us. Our journey is almost done."

Maltzar:

Fi hovers next to me. We have fallen behind on our way to the desert.

"So..." I say. "I heard you talking about an eternal sleep...what's up with that?"

"When my mission here is finished I will be returned to the pedestal and I will sleep."

"Forever?" I ask.

"Yes."

"You mean you die?"

"No. That would be to say that my soul moves on to the afterlife. It doesn't. I will become one with the sword." Fi says.

"That's not fair. You deserve better than that." I scoff, angered at the idea.

"I am a weapon, Maltzar." Fi says. "It's perfectly fair. In fact it's merciful. I'm a tool killing. Nothing more."

"You're being used." I snap.

"For good." Fi finishes. "That is all I can wish for." Her smile is wistful.

"Maltzar, will you keep up?" Link calls back.

"It's not like I'm the only one." I yell back pointing at my companion.

"Technically you are." He points to the Master Sword on his back. Fi smiles at me.

"But you're here." I shove her. She glides gracefully back and kicks me in the arm.

"Yes, I am here. But my source is up ahead." She goes to catch up but I grab her arm...fabric thing.

"I'm not done with you." I pull her back. "So what are your hobbies?"

She gives me an odd look.

"My life is my mission."

"Well there's gotta be something you like to do." I say, irritated. Fi looks at me with big window-like eyes, entirely blue with now pupil or iris. They are kind of creepy, I like her human form better.

"I like to dance." She says.

"What kind?" I smile.

"The graceful sort."

"So I guess tribal cerebral palsy is out of the question?" I ask. She laughs. Her voice falls like gems through wind chimes.

"I wouldn't mind trying it."

"Well then, that settles it. Before you go and do your R.I.P I'm taking you on a N.T.D- Night of Tribal Dancing."

She smiles, ducking her head, almost bashfully like a swan tucking its head. I glow inside.

"Come on guys." Link says.

"Yeah, yeah I'm coming!" I snap, picking up my pace with great reluctance. I feel something soft brush my cheek. I look to see Fi is beaming at me.

Link:

We come to the gates of Zant's Palace. The carcasses of Twili beasts lie rotting in the desert sun. We break through and storm the castle. The place is a ghost town. Not an enemy in sight. Only when we come to the throne room are we faced with a challenge. Zant is lounging in his thrown which has been unmistakably etched into the stone of Elray. I advance furiously, but Zelda holds me back.

"I knew it was only a matter of time before you came to me." He says, playing with his sceptre. "You brandish that silly toy like you know how to use it." He rises. "You may be the chosen, but you are nothing but an insect to me one that will squish nicely under my heel." He charges. A barrier forms around him and I, leaving Maltzar and Zelda out. It's just me and Fi now; just me and the Master Sword. His sceptre breaks into two blades which he wields with all the grace of a samurai. I am cut and beaten and thrown down. But no matter how much it hurts, no matter how many ribs break, I get up.

"Come on, Fi! KICK HIM!" Maltzar hollers. She appears, her eyes alight with inspiration. With the grace of a pirouette, she performs a roundhouse kick to his head. Zant stumbles.

"You shouldn't show yourself, sword. I can break you just easily as your master." Zant hisses coming after her. I slice open his arm. Snarling like the wolf I am, I leap bringing the blade down upon him. He falls.

I am standing over him. The purple blood seeps up to my boots. Choking Zant glares at me.

"Don't think this ends here." he splutters. "My darkness will reign supreme when Dragmire is on the thrown. The future of Hyrule will be written in your blood as the history is stained with mine." He points at Zelda and me. "You will not escape Demise's curse. You will fall." And with that he dies.

"For a dying dude, he certainly had a lot of wind in him." Maltzar says. I collapse, hurting everywhere. Zelda heals me and bandages me as best she can. I ache but at least I can breathe again. We approach Elray.

"This is it." Maltzar says. "Finally we can get that sword!"

Zelda plays the harp. It is a warm tune, mysterious and lilting. It sounds like the sand dunes outside. The stone joins the song with its ethereal sound. Green light spreads from it until it is as bright as an emerald sun. The light condenses creating vines all through the chamber. Leaves fountain out of them gushing all over the walls.

Zelda finishes the song but the stone continues to sing.

Through the music an ethereal voice speaks, neither male nor female:

_"You have a question to ask of me,_

_Ask it now and I will set you free._

_Dally not for my time is short_

_For my place is in Hylia's court"_

"My name is Zelda Faron." She pauses. "I am Hylia and I've come to ask you where I can find The Ether Sword of Good and Evil."

There is a pause where I take Zelda's hand and squeeze. She grips back firmly. Then Elray speaks.

_"The sword of evil and good,_

_Is not greatly understood._

_It changes its mind,_

_On the turn of a dime._

_Befriend it first,_

_And quench its thirst._

_For only will blood suffice._

_Be ready to pay a great price._

_But where it can be found,_

_I cannot tell._

_For the answer does lie_

_With the stone of Martelle"_

Suddenly a beam of light shoots out and constructs a three dimensional map of Hyrule. It is blue but for one golden star gleaming in the north, the opposite side of the map from home.

"Wait you mean we went all through that only to be relocated?" Maltzar fumes. "This is bullshit!" He kicks over a stand. Zelda takes a deep breath. I can tell she is trying to hide her deep disappointment. She pulls out the map and marks it down.

"Thank you, Elray." She bows. The map disappears as does the music and light. She looks at us.

"I know this hard, but we must keep going. Martelle must know."

"And if it doesn't," Maltzar snaps.

"Then we keep on the trail! We have an advantage over Ghirahim. He can't awaken the Stones. We need to keep our heads down and move quickly."

"And so we go." I say. "Though thick and thin, we go." Zelda smiles. "To Zora's Domain."


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter 10

"I don't believe this! I just don't believe this!" Maltzar scoffs angrily. "Do you believe this?" he turns to Fi. "No, of course you don't!" He answers for her, dismissively. "First we go to the Mountain, Raine says to go to the desert. We end up going through hell and high water just to get to the damn place and then we are told to go to Zora's Domain? We should be done by now!"

"It could have been worse." Zelda says.

"Oh don't get all optimistic on me," Maltzar snaps. "I want to brood about this." He crosses his arms. We walk in silence.

"Has your memory returned?" I hear Fi ask Maltzar.

"What?"

"You said you have amnesia, is any of it coming back?"

"No." he sighs. "I'm just as in the dark about my past as these two are." I feel him gesture to me and Zelda. "The only thing I know is that I'm a sword hunter."

"You mean? You look for blades like me?" Fi asks.

"Yeah I suppose I'm a collector of sorts...you'll be in good hands when this is over."

I glance back. Is Maltzar planning to keep the Master Sword? They are staring at each other...deeply. I turn away feeling a twinge of annoyance and sadness.

We follow the river upstream towards the north mountain range. We come to the mouth of the river at the base of a cliff. The way is slippery inside and the paths along the walls are narrow. Rapids rush passed. I can hear the distant thunder of a waterfall.

Something cold grabs my ankle. I'm yanked toward the water.

"LINK!" Zelda grabs my arm.

"Oh shit!" Maltzar grabs her waist. Fi kicks the assaulter. More blue hands reach out and grab the others. We all fall into the water.

We are dragged up stream in seconds. I swallow some water. I thrash as my head breaks the surface. I am pinned to the banks and my arms and feet are bound. I can hear Maltzar cursing somewhere. I realize my blue skinned captor is of the Zora tribe. We are carried into Zora's Domain without any concern if our heads are above water or not. They keep pushing Maltzar under. As we near the undertow of the massive waterfall, they dive us down. I struggle. I'm losing air. Suddenly my captor spreads her magnificent fins and flexes them rocketing her out of the water and to the top of the water fall. She carries me into the throne room.

My companions and I are thrown down at the feet of a woman. She is blue skinned like others but not at all a Zora. She wears a skimpy purple gown, with pointy shoulder pads.

"Very good," she purrs. "Everyone is accounted for, splendid. Now the questions is..." she paces inspecting us each. "Which body would do best?"

I don't like the sound of that.

"We must wait for Ghirahim," A men steps in. He is so heavily armoured he looks like a golden trashcan with a duns cap. I try not to laugh. Maltzar snorts. "Something amuses you?" he growls, lifting a mace threateningly.

"Easy now." The woman chides. "They will die soon. After Lord Ghirahim decides their fate."

"You promised to leave." One of the Zoras speak up. "We have captured the wanted ones, so let us be."

The woman eyes him shrewdly and looks to the man. He swings his mace and the Zora crumples, smashed and unmistakably dead. I look away trying not to vomit.

"Any other complaints?" The woman asks.

"Yes." Comes a clear voice like a wind chime. Maltzar perks up. Fi is gliding into the throne room. The Zoras back away from her.

"And you are?" Sneers the woman.

"Your reckoning." Fi smiles with a murderous glare. She charges. The woman throws her down easily.

"Do you know who I am?" she scoffs.

"I don't know: a worm?" Fi says back coolly. Maltzar chuckles.

"I am Veran, Sorceress of the Night!"

That sounds familiar. She steps on Fi's chest and pins her. I struggle angrily.

"Where do you people keep coming from?" Maltzar scoffs.

"From the gap between dimensions." Veran says. "We were called to service, by Demise." her eyes gleam as they turn to Zelda. She shows no expression. "In the mean time, before Ghirahim arrives, why don't I do his job for him." She turns to me. I roll my eyes indifferently, though I care very much. "Take her." she kicks Fi over to the man. He holds her captive with one hand. "And make sure this one's bonds are tight." she nudges my foot. One of the Zoras checks the ropes. But I feel something being forced into my hand. It's sharp, and is forced up under the ropes. She has given me a knife.

"Now then." Veran lifts me by the throat. "I never did get to know your flavour." she purrs. I'm remembering something, I remember that this witch could posses people. She'd threatened me with it before. I had managed to fend her off then, but I was nowhere near the predicament I am in now. I work the ropes with the dagger quickly.

She slams me down and grabs my hair, forcing me to look in her eyes.

"Tell me, Link...where is the Ether Blade?" She asks. I glare trying to move the dagger without catching her attention.

"You're wasting your time." Maltzar laughs. She turns her red eyes on him sharply. "We don't have any more of a clue than you do."

"Onox." she looks to the trashcan holding Fi. He lumbers over and lifts Maltzar by the scruff of his neck.

"And why is that, prey tell?" he growls. Maltzar smirks.

"The Singing stones haven't been that helpful." He shrugs. "They keep passing the buck to the next one."

"Which is next?" Veran asks, her attention still on Maltzar. My arms are almost free.

"Martelle, where ever that one is." Maltzar says.

"You certainly have a co-operative friend." Veran gloats to me. "Uncover Martelle."

Zoras hurry over and pull a rope. Blue drapes fall from the ceiling revealing a giant red crystal, hanging down like a chandler. My hand his free, I carefully shift the ropes off the other.

"Alright, I'll make a deal with you your highness." Veran turns to Zelda. "Play the music that will awaken Martelle or lose your chosen hero."

Zelda regards her like stone.

"You will kill him anyway." she says with no emotion. But I see a slight tremor in her knees.

"Oh so you are tired of him? You think you can survive without him?"

"Of course she can." I say. "She a warrior now."

I see the warmth in her eyes when she looks at me.

"Have it your way." Veran advances on me. I quickly cut the robs around my legs and spring to my feet. I draw the Master Sword.

"Careful!" Onox taunts, his hand wandering over Fi's chest crystal. "I can rob that sword of all its power by ending her here and now."

Fi whips him in the face with her drape. He grunts clutching his eye. She drives her heal into the toe of his boot viciously and is immediately released. She flips and in a flash she is in my sword.

"At your service, Master," her ethereal voice sings. I attack. The Zoras, angered that their leader has fallen, join me and free the others. It would seem we have an easy battle. But that was before I receive that rude awakening to a memory. Both have alternate forms. Deadly ones at that.

Onox transforms into a giant dragon, much like Volvagia. He fills the full Zoras Domain breathing balls of blue fire.

"Leave this one to me!" Maltzar winks, heaving the megaton hammer over his shoulder.

"Careful!" Fi voice chimes as he runs off with a band of Zoras. Meanwhile Veran has sprouted wings and is swooping down on us like an evil bird. I catch her in the side with my blade and she changes. Eight legs, eight eyes and hair all over. I feel my stomach drop as the huge arachnid creeps toward me, clicking her pinchers. Web splatter everywhere trapping all of us. But she advances on me. She cradles me like a lover. I see my terrified face reflected in her eyes. An arrow strikes one of them, sending her screaming. I cut through the webs desperately. Zelda is on a ledge above the mess knocking another arrow. Veran turns into a giant wasp and thunders up towards her, stinger aimed.

"LOOK OUT!" I yell. Too late. Zelda falls, clutching her side. I run and pick up her bow and aim. The arrow shatters one of Veran's wings. She lands and turns into a massive shelled creature. She shoots her head out and snaps at me. I dodge and move back tantalizingly close to her reach. She cocks her ugly head, red eyes gleaming. She lunges again and I jump. The Master Sword swings down and beheads her. The body of Veran disintegrates. I hurry to Zelda. She is white as a sheet. She yanks out the stinger.

"The t-tip is broken." She gasps. "It's still inside."

"What do I do?" I ask, gripping her hand. Shaking, she pulls out her pack and drops it in front of me. "W-wooden chop sticks. Use...them." she winces, tears in her eyes. I riffle through it.

"Here." A Zora comes, with her own pack. She pulls out tools that are so delicate I didn't think they could have been handmade.

"Go!" Zelda shoos me.

"But I want to-"

"Yes I know but Maltzar needs you!"

I run and kiss her hard before rushing from the cavern.

Maltzar was doing fine. His Zoras were distracting the Dragon while he beat the red crystal in its forehead. Onox tried to shake him off but it was too late. With one final swing a fountain of blood sprayed as the crystal itself lodge into his brain. A tidal wave proceeded him as he fell. The dragon was slain. I hold the Master Sword feeling a wave of relief that was long wanted. So many days of toiling on my own. So many enemies I had to kill myself. But now I have support. Now I have a team.

Fi flips out beside me. I look at her. I'm not used to seeing her smile like that. Maltzar hollers out in triumph from below.

"DUDE, DID YOU SEE THAT? BAM, I HIT HIM GOOD!" He stomps on the bloody crystal laughing like a maniac.

"He knows how to do it." Fi says. I suddenly feel my throat constrict.

"Fi," I say without looking at her. "You know it would never work."

"I've told him." Fi says calmly. "But that doesn't change a thing."

Worry rears inside me and I hurry back to my Zelda.

"I'm fine." She pants. "She got it out." The Zora mops up the blood as Zelda helps bandage herself.

"Thank you!" I hold her arm. The Zora nods.

The chamber is empty. The three of us (technically four) stand beneath Martelle. Zelda readies her harp and plays. It is a haunting beautiful tune, filled with the deep currents of the ocean. Martelle echoes the song gracefully and suddenly ignites. Flames rush out all over the walls. I look around startled. We are trapped. But for some reason I feel safe, like warm arms are holding me, protecting me. Martelle speaks with the genderless voice, saying the same words as the others:

_"You have a question to ask of me,_

_Ask it now and I will set you free._

_Dally not for my time is short_

_For my place is in Hylia's court"_

"I am Hylia." Zelda says, allowing me to support her. She is so tired. "And I ask that you tell me where I can find the Ether Blade."

Martelle answers:

_"The cutlass you seek was lost at sea,_

_No longer could this blade be free._

_It fell far down from Heavens' mouth,_

_And then landed miles to the south._

_But where it can be found,_

_I cannot lie._

_For the answer does stay_

_With the stone of Arski"_

"ARKSI?! HOW MANY ARE THERE YOU BITCH!" Maltzar explodes. "USELESS!" He throws up his arms. I too am crestfallen so I don't scold him. Suddenly a beam of light shoots out of Martelle and constructs a three dimensional map of Hyrule. It is blue but for one golden star gleaming in the south, in the outer islands where Zelda made her first kill.

"Hey...isn't that where you sent Ghirahim?" Zelda asks. Maltzar turns to look.

"Weird..." He says. "I sent him there because it was the first thing to pop into my head. In fact I remember being there briefly, like in a dream actually."

"What were you doing?" Fi asks.

"Fighting." Maltzar shrugs.

"Who?" I ask.

"Funny enough, Ghirahim."

"Do you remember why?" Zelda presses.

"No..."

"Or anything else?"

"It's guess work now, but I suspect it had to do with the Ether Blade. I am a sword hunter after all- well according to him, as reliable as that is." He finishes in a derisive mutter. There is a long pause where we all just stand for a moment.

"Well, before we go, I'd like to pay a visit to home." Zelda says.

"I agree." I sigh. Goddess knows we need it.


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter 11

The travel home is so far remarkably easy. Nothing stands in our way, so we take the time to rest and heal.

I am shaken awake.

"Link, yo, Link- I wanna tell Fi something!"

It's Maltzar.

"Why?" I groan, rolling away.

"Is she sleeping? How do I get her out of the sword?"

"Is it important?"

"Yes!"

With a sigh, I reach over and touch the hilt of the Master Sword.

"Yes, Master?" Fi flips out with a flash and hovers daintily. "What is your will?"

"He wants to talk to you." I jerk my thumb sleepily over my shoulder. Somehow she seems to glimmer a little more brightly, though the embers of the fire are low.

"Yes, Mal?"

Since when did she call him that?

"Come on." he cocks his head toward the trees with a grin. Fi glides with him into the neighbouring clearing out of ear shot. I lay back down, but a nagging feeling keeps me up. I find myself hiding behind a tree, an ear cocked toward their conversation.

"Are you sure?" Fi asks.

"Positive!" Maltzar says with glee. "This isn't any ordinary dream!"

"What did he look like?"

"Red hair, just like me and he was covered in soot- probably from working at the fire all the time...I couldn't see his face- the sun was really bright, see? But he's a black smith! He made swords! It makes sense. I'm a sword hunter because my father made swords!"

"Do you remember his name?"

"No, but-"

"Do you remember yours?"

"Not yet-"

"I'm glad you had a dream that could unlock your past, but honestly Maltzar that's not much to go on."

"But it's something!" He says and she hushes him. Their voices drop and I lean in to hear.

"How can you find your father when all you know about him is he is a black smith with red hair?- from a dream!" Fi asks.

"I heard my mother's voice." Maltzar speaks so low I have to strain to hear. "And I know it was her. You know that warmth you feel, that safe feeling that tells you deep down in your deepest core that it's alright?...I guess I'm talking to the wrong person- the point is I heard her singing- singing me to sleep. And every child, even if they are taken at birth always remembers their mother's voice. It's the key to finding her. Who knows, she may be singing the same song now."

"What did she look like?"

There is a pause.

"Maybe, we lived in the desert! Ha! That's it. The dreams are so bright because I was raised in the desert!" Silence. "What?"

"You're going to go looking for them aren't you?"

"Yes...but not until this is finished." he says.

"Finished." Fi sighs. She sounds empty. "I would like to meet them."

"You will-"

"But as a human." Fi turns to him. "If this is finished... I will be in the sword, a sleep for eternity."

Again silence.

"No." Maltzar says, "No, I won't have it."

"Mal."

"You listen here, Fi. You deserve better- No, you do...And I think there is a way to fix this."

"How?" Fi asks. I can hear the lament in her voice. "How can you go against Hylia's will."

"Uh, she's sleeping right behind you."

"And do you think she has the power to change the way of the ancient swords now? As a human. I was created eons ago. There is no reforming my design now."

I hear Maltzar growl a sigh. Crickets fill the emptiness.

"My father, made swords." Maltzar says. "And he taught me about you, the legendary blades..." His tone is thoughtful, as if on the edge of a cliff, ready to take flight. "Maybe it was never the blade I was interested in...Maybe it was the spirits. Fi, there may be a way to separate you from the blade! And my father might know!"

"That's like taking the head off a body!" Fi snaps. "It can't be done without killing us both."

"But it's worth a try."

"Mal, no." Fi states. "MAL?" I jump.

"No, I will not stand here while your time with me ticks away. I'll bring back my Father, and he will help you. You'll see." his voice is much farther off. I jump to my feet.

"Mal wait- no!" Fi calls.

"What?" I pause hearing his voice draw nearer. "We saved the desert. I'll check through the villages! It will be easy. And I'll be so much more of a use to you once I know my past. Once I know why I was hunting the Ether Blade. Why I was fighting Ghirahim. Maybe my father can even come with us and help!" He sounds so enthusiastic. I'm not used to hearing him sound like that.

"Mal, think." Fi commands. "You could be chasing a dream- just a dream. What if you go and find that you were wrong, what then?"

"Then I'll just have to dream again." He says.

"Stop!" Fi says. "I don't want you to go."

I peer around the tree to see Maltzar running for her and-

My jaw slides open. They are kissing. Hard.

"I promise I will free you." he murmurs against her lips. "I will be back- with my family! Who knows I may have brothers!" Maltzar runs off.

"HEY!" I dash out, not caring they'd know I was eavesdropping. "MALTZAR!" I race after him. "MALTZAR!" He is fast, with those long legs. Panting hard, I stop in the dark of the forest. I have lost him. What on earth am I going to tell Zelda?


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter 12

"I tried stopping him!" I say. "He's gone to the desert to find his family." Zelda rubs her temple. Fi remains in the sword, silent and unresponsive.

"Let him go." she says.

"What?" I ask.

"There is no stopping him and I have no doubt he will return." She nods toward the Master Sword.

But I didn't realize how big of gap was in our group until we continued to travel south. I think I miss his crude jokes and sneering taunts, for some masochistic reason. When we come to our tribe I found I missed him as a team member most. The place was in shambles. Zelda and I run, looking for survivors. Trees have fallen. Every tent is burned. So many dead bodies. This is my home, my neighbours and friends. I hold Fado hard, sobbing painfully. He is cold and stiff. The assault happened long ago, maybe even after we just left.

I lay him to rest and look for my Zelda. She is at her father's side. He is gravely wounded and slipping from consciousness. Bloody, self-administered bandages wrap his body. It looks like he has fought in many battles. No surprise there.

"My daughter! Zelda." his breathing is shallow and laboured. Tears run down her anguished face. "You must defeat Demise. He is wiping away all life from this world to make way for his own. Do not falter. I died a proud warrior."

"No- you won't die, let me just-" She fumbles with the crimson cloth. He touches her hand.

"I love you. I love you." And just like that, he died. Zelda bent like a crumbling mountain and howled long and hard. I held her as we both cried into each other's shoulders. We had returned too late.

"How sentimental." Sneers a cool voice. I look up through my tears. "Hylia and her Chosen, crying. How sweet." It is a pale tall man, with purple hair, draping over one eye. "Hold each other close, for there is nothing for you to do but cower before the greatest Sorcerer of them all." He grins, unfolding his fingers, the clouds darkening as if drawn in by strings. The wind rushes in like a wall, making the trees groan and bend. I leap to my feet and draw my blade.

"I am Vaati, the unstoppable!" A tree crashes down, desecrating the bodies of my people. I charge, screaming in fury. He catches my blade with two fingers.

"A trick I learned from Lord Ghirahim." he whispers to me, grabbing my throat. "My how you've grown." He appraises me with mock astonishment. "But still a weak fool non-the-less." He throws me down. The Master Sword tumbles out of my hand. Vaati's form darkens as if made of shadow. He grows until he is a giant one eyed bat, with multiple sets of wings. His wolf like face contracts with fury as he prowls toward me. I scramble back, trying to hide my terror behind a glare.

He lunges past me and catches a stave swinging his way. He yanks Zelda towards him. She stumbles and draws her bow. He slams her down with a wing and pins me with another. The arm holds like iron as I attack it with my dagger. I might as well be using a toothpick.

Vaati shakes his purple fur and howls. Shadows creep up out of the ground. He releases me as they bear down on me. I fight and struggle but they have me. Zelda grabs an arrow and brandishes it at Vaati. He just watches her. He catches it in his teeth and eats it with a grin. Zelda turns to run, but he snags her with his teeth.

"ZELDA!" I yell. Vaati's eye swivels to me as he holds her in his mouth. "Keep him here." His voice sounds from the thunder in the clouds. "Ghirahim has something special in mind for him." The shadows holding me reform into a cage with arms inside that grip my limbs and hair, keeping me trapped. With that Vaati spreads all his wings and takes off toward the southern ocean.

"VAATI!" I scream after him. "ZELDA FIGHT! FIGHT!"

There is nothing I can do. I am stuck. I look over to see Fi by the Master Sword.

"Fi!" I gasp, unable to move. "You can pass it to me can't you?"

"I'm sorry. I cannot do that." She shakes her head. "There is only one thing I can do." The Master Sword rises from the ground and points at her chest.

"Wait? What are you-?"

The blade stabs her.

"FI!"

She crumples to the ground as it forces deeper and deeper into the gem on her chest. But the point does not protrude out of her back. Once the hilt disappears, she transforms. Fi stands as a human, with two arms, pale skin and blue eyes- human eyes. She steps forward and slams her heal into the cage. It hisses and the arms holding me begin to slip. She twirls and kicks, beating at it but it keeps recovering. She is panting and still I am just as trapped as I was before.

"It's no use." She sighs. "Only my blade can break it."

"Here, let me try!" I raise my hand to call the Master Sword out to me.

"It won't work." Fi says. "Vaati made sure of it, you cannot call on me through his dark barrier. It must be broken from outside and I cannot wield my own sword!"

"So what do we do?" I ask.

"Get the one person that can help us." Fi begins to leave.

"Wait- you don't mean-"

"Yes." she turns to me. "Maltzar." And with that she ran off into the forest.

"Be quick!" I gasp. I'm already getting a cramp.


	13. Chapter 13

Chapter 13

Fi:

I am running, dousing with my eyes, in search of our last hope.

"Maltzar!" I call as his life energy draws closer. I am nearing Lanayru Province. He is almost at the rope bridge to the desert. I break from the forest and charge across the Moore, my drapes whipping behind me. I see him.

"MALTZAR!" He turns. Shock and confusion light his face at the sight of me.

"Fi?"

"Mal!" I pant, not at all used to the limitations of my human form. "We need you to come back. Link- he's trapped and Zelda has been captured!"

"Seriously?" Maltzar scoffs. "Seems they really can't keep it together without me."

"This is no time to joke." I snap. "Ghirahim is coming for Link. He could have him as we speak. Vaati says he's-"

"Whoa-whoa-whoa-whoa, Vaati? Since when was he on the baddies' team?"

"They are getting stronger Mal, more of them will continue to appear. It would seem Demise is creating an army of all the legendary tyrants from Hyrule's past. This is only the beginning! Please, Mal I need you to come."

"Can't Link get out. He always manages to."

"Not this time." I say. Maltzar groans angrily.

"I'm a stone's throw away from my home. My parents could be waiting for me! The answer to my memories is across this bridge and you want me to come back because of their mistake?" he fumes. I cannot believe what I am hearing.

"Are you really that selfish?!" I ask. "Ever since I joined, you have been nothing but a foul mouthed, hot-headed nuisance!"

"Yeah? Well you certainly seemed to like it." He growls leaning in on me. I slap him. That felt good. But his expression wounds me.

"Fi." he breathes softly, his face like a child's, lonely and hurt. I stand my ground.

"Go find your parents!" I shove him. "See if I care! You clearly don't. But know this! If you don't come back, both Link and Zelda will die."

Maltzar is still looking at me like that. My heart slowly melts. We grab each other at the same time and our lips become one.

"Where are they?" He breaks away too soon. Remembering my cause, I lead him back to Faron Forest.

When we return to the wreckage of Link's home, I pull Maltzar into the bushes. Ghirahim turns, his eyes missing us by inches. Gazing suspiciously in our general direction, I hold my breath and clap a hand over Maltzar's mouth. The Demon Lord slinks off.

"Hello, dearest." he simpers sarcastically. We move behind a tree to see. Link is still trapped in a cage of black shadows, arms gripping every part of him. I can tell he has been struggling wildly. He is in the most uncomfortable of positions. He glares murderously up at Ghirahim. "I've longed for this moment to see you so helpless: a lamb for the slaughter."

Maltzar tenses and I hold him back.

"Take me, Maltzar." I say, "Take my hilt." I open my chest gem and reveal the handle of the Master Sword. "By the will of my Master, I will let you wield me this once."

I can tell Maltzar doesn't like the idea of "using" me, as he would put it. But his hesitation breaks when Ghirahim speaks.

"I have a gift for you, Link. Since you have been the poison to all our plans, I will now make you instead our remedy."

Maltzar draws the Master Sword and charges silently. Ghirahim turns catching my blade against his black rapier.

"Sword Hunter!" he spits. Maltzar parries him and goes for a stab. I taste bitter blood as my edge bites into Ghirahim's side. Then with one fell swoop, Maltzar swings me and shatters the black cage around my Master. He is free. Maltzar tosses me to him.

"Yours to finish!" He says. Ghirahim pounces on him.

"No!" I flip out of the sword.

"If you won't join us, Link. I'll make you fight your friends!" Ghirahim hisses. And with that he forces a mask onto my Maltzar's face. A heart shaped mask with purple and red tribal designs and big frightening yellow eyes.

"NO!" Link charges but it is too late. Maltzar falls to his knees clawing at it, trying to get it off, but the wood is forming to his face, merging with his skin.

"Welcome to our side, Sword Hunter." Ghirahim taunts. A tortured scream rushing out of Maltzar. Link swipes at Ghirahim but he vanishes in a splash of diamonds. "I'm no longer your worries, Link" his voice laughs on the air. "Maltzar is...or should I say...Majora?" His lips are at my ear whispering the name. I swipe at him again and he disappears.

"Mal?" I say fearfully. He has stopped moving. The vibrant colours of the mask now paint his whole body. His eyes are crazed and yellow. And his hair has turned into a long mane of red tentacles that writhe. He gets to his feet, tall and muscular. Perhaps a bit more than before. A deep sound, breathes out of him and breaks into laughter like distant thunder. Link readies himself, his brow anguished.

"FREE!" Majora screeches, his eyes wide and piercing. "FREE WITH THE LIFE OF A NEW PUPPET! A STRONG PUPPET! HA HA AHA HAAAA!" he contorts as if the laughter hurts him. Suddenly his eyes are green and frightened.

"L-Link!" Maltzar chokes, spit stringing from his trembling lip.

"SEE IF YOU CAN BRING YOURSELF TO KILL THIS ONE!" cackles Majora, his eyes flashing yellow again. "DO YOU HAVE IT IN YOU? COULD YOU? _WOULD_ YOU DESTROY THIS LIFE? SO INNOCENT! SO HELPLESS? HAAA HA HAAHAH AAAAA!"

He falls at Link's feet, clawing at him like a drowning man. It's Maltzar.

"Link! Help me!" He gasps tears running down his patterned face. "Make her stop! Make it stop! Please!" He begs. "Kill me!" He falls back laughing as he kicks and struggles as if pierced by invisible weapons.

"OH LISTEN TO HIM PINE! LISTEN TO HIM SQUEEL!" Majora laughs while Maltzar's body shakes and squirms. I am crying. I can't stop the sound from coming out of me.

"Link! She's gonna- Aaaaaaah! Kill me now! Do it! -Before she-" His chest thrusts and he opens with a silent scream. Link slowly raises the Master Sword. I jump in front of him.

"Master, forgive me, but I won't let you."

"She's torturing him," Link says. "And do you realize how dangerous Majora is?" he asks, but I can see the pain on his face. "She...she is weak. This may be our only chance."

"No, she is already too strong for us. But there is another way." I say. Maltzar shakes and convulses, whiplashing his head into the ground, frothing at the mouth. I am having trouble keeping it together. Majora is torturing him...for fun, while she drinks up his life force for herself.

"We must find the rival mask of power of the spirit Fiirce: The Fierce Deity Mask!" tears run down my face. "There may be a way to save Maltzar without killing him- please, Master!"

Link swallows. I see he's shaking.

"And if I lose my soul to Fiirce, what then?" he asks.

"I will be there to pull you out." I say, confident despite my tears.

"Where is it?"

"Termina- beyond the outer islands."

He sheaths me.

"Let's go." We run.

"FLEE!" Majora howls. "RUN WHILE YOU CAN!" He rises smiling, gobs of spit flying from his teeth. "BUT YOU WON'T GET FAR!" he points shaking with excitement. "FOR I WILL CONSUME...CONSUME EVERYTHING!" He cackles throwing back his head, arms outstretched. Rumbling trickles down from the sky. We look up and stop. The moon! The moon that had just risen with the evening was swelling before our eyes. It ignites with a blaze like the sun and bits fly off like shooting stars. The moon is falling.


	14. Chapter 14

Chapter 14

Fi:

Link charges at Majora.

"Wait!" I yell. He swings my blade and Majora blocks with his forearm, his handsome face crazed and drooling. He kicks Link to the ground and draws out two blood red whips from his undulating mane. He wields them with deadly grace. They snap, scarring the ground around Link. He's toying with him.

"MASTER!" I cry. "He's too powerful! Come away!"

But Link persists, rage in his eyes. Tears shed for his ruined home and murdered people glisten on his face. A whip slices his calf open: a graze of what the wound might have been. Then it wraps around Link's neck with a crack, choking him. Majora yanks him like a dog on a leash.

"LET'S PLAY! LET'S PLAY! COME BACK ANOTHER DAY!" Majora sings, dancing and twirling. "YOU BE THE BAD GUY AND I THE GOOD! DO AS I ASK! COME ON! COME ON! PUT ON THE MASK!" He pulls hard turning Link and throwing him off his balance. He chokes and coughs. Then Majora strips himself bare, sensually, teasingly. I do have to admit he has a nice body. "PUT ON THE MASK!" he leaps on top of Link and pins his wrists. Link is stunned.

"Do me!" Majora hisses venomously. "Do me a favour and come back with flavour! You are a pitiful mess!" he forces their lips together.

"Master!" My voice breaks. Majora leaps back and flips to his feet.

"FIGHT ME WHEN YOU'RE WORTHY...If there is still time." with that he skips off into the trees, laughing wildly. My Master is shocked. I am dazed. I couldn't bring myself to harm Maltzar... some sword I am.

"Link, the moon is falling fast!" I look to the globe of death in the sky. "It will land tomorrow evening."

"I must save Zelda!" He says.

"But we don't have enough time!"

"Not if I can help it!" Link rises.

Link:

We are sailing through the cluster of the outer islands: the region of destiny, as our people called it, where the Chieftains' offspring would perform their first kill. That life seems eons ago. It brings tears to my eyes.

"Vaati took her this way?" I ask.

"Yes." says Fi. "Master, look!"

"I see it."

I steer us toward a raging cloud over one of the islands. Once on shore I pull the canoe into the bushes. With the Master Sword in hand I make my way into the strange forest of the isle. In no time I come to the edge of a massive crater. Something indigo glows at it's core. Surrounding it is an army of dark creatures I've never seen before: things with the heads of bores, wolves with human hands, goblins with rows of teeth and boars with eight legs. I see Vaati lounging on a boulder in human form, smirking, a pair of witches at his sides. Ghirahim stands by the giant gem in the center of it all, beside an exceedingly tall man with flaming red hair and soot all over his skin.

"Is that...is that Maltzar's father?" Fi asks. The tall, red-haired man certainly fit the description. He was handsome in a dark way, same as Maltzar. "He's..._helping_ Ghirahim?"

"Maybe he serves Demise..." I say, sneaking down the slopes. "And Maltzar fought Ghirahim because he was rebelling."

"Oh Mal," Fi sighs, longing and sympathy in her voice.

My foot slips. I tumble down into the midst of the enemy. The pig faces seem startled. I leap to my feet, keeping my back to the wall. The melee begins. Black blood paints the ground. As I decapitate the last one, more run in. I'm gasping and aching, I'm so tired. Spears jab at me, like snakes testing my flavour. The wounds Majora gave are throbbing. I'm brought to my knees but I keep fighting. Like a cornered wolf I thrash and twist, keeping my oppressors at bay. Soon they just watch me struggle. Ghirahim approaches and stands over me. I swipe at him and he steps on my blade.

"Look who it is, wholesome and not in pieces. How disappointing." he drawls. I throw myself at his knees but he kicks me in the face. His blade comes under my chin and he forces me to look up at him. "No matter. I'll own your soul instead."

Fi flips into being and kicks him. He staggers, hissing. I grab the Master sword and strain to my feet.

"Let Zelda go." I growl, pointing with my blade. Ghirahim laughs. "I'm afraid you are a little late for that one, hm...what was your name again?"

I scowl. But a chill rolls down my spine as the man with flaming hair looms into view. He is holding the harp. A string has broken.

"Hylia's power is waning." he says with deep tones. If death could speak, he would have this voice. "This is but a useless trinket." he throws it at my feet.

"Where is Zelda?!" I yell.

"She's dead." he says. My insides freeze up.

"No...YOU'RE LYING!"

"To save you she awakened Arksi and gave us the Ether Blade. Demise killed her with it." I'm finding it hard to breathe. The world is spinning. I refuse to believe it. "And now," the man looks up to the moon burning a hole in the sky, "Demise's world is almost complete. All life from Hylia's song will be annihilated. And he will reign supreme." His handsome face smiles.

"AND WHAT OF YOUR SON?" Fi yells. "DO YOU CARE?"

"Son?" He looks perplexed. "Why I haven't been more proud of him. It was he that fed us the location of Arski. Without him, none of this would be possible."

"NO HE WOULDN'T!" Fi cries. I feel cold and dead inside.

"Run, rabbit, run." Ghirahim giggles. "You've lost." The army crowds in, cackling like bats.

"Malladus." Maltzar's father purrs. A great blue lion, with a fiery main, horns of a bull and the face of a man, parts the crowd. "Kill him." It lunges for me. I fall back stabbing and hacking at it. But the Master Sword does nothing.

"Link," Fi gasps. "I'm waning."

"NO FI! DON'T GIVE IN!" I choke. Grabbing the harp, I scramble back up the slope, dodging teeth and claws. Malladus pursues me up the side of the crater. I can hear the army laughing. Tears run down my face. Zelda...dead? As I gain altitude, I look back hoping to see her golden hair, somewhere in the masses, but there is no sign. They lied! They must have. As the climb becomes steeper and more treacherous, I manage to get out of reach for a moment. I freeze stunned by the sight below. There on the bright purple gleam of Arksi, stands Majora, lifting a limp body over his head. A body with golden tresses of hair: Zelda.

"VICTORY! VICTORY! VICTORY!" he shrieks, shaking her. The army echoes the chant, filling the air with a cacophony of sound. I scream but I am not heard. The sky rumbles. Evening is drawing near. There is not enough time to save Hyrule.

Malladus roars, catching my boot with his claw. I run into the forest. Leaves whip my face and bushes snag my heels. I'm blinded by grief and empty. I come to a rocky summit and I climb. My hands are shaking violently, I keep slipping. When I come to the peek a great roaring turns my attention. The moon is a bowl of flame in the sky, lowering, falling. I see the forests of Hyrule ignite. Dragon Roost crumbles. And in a flash of white the moon hits. All sound is sucked in by the impact. Silence. I wait, not breathing

Then a shock wave brings back sound. It hits my ears like a jackhammer and bursts my eardrums. The wind throws me off my feet and crushes me to the ground. Another shock wave cracks the earth under me. Once I find air slow enough to breathe, I sit up. A wall of fire is rushing towards me. I run. Down the slopes I slip and fall, tumbling through the brambles and rocks. I run to the edge of a cliff. The sea laps at its base far below.

I turn. The flames roll over the peak and flow down toward me like an avalanche. I jump.

The falling sensation swoops in on my gut holding me terrified as my arms flail. The explosion above roars across the sky painting the sea red. The water hits like a wall. I feel the impact in my spine, with a slap in the face and a punch in my ribs.

Gravity drives me deep. I have to fight to get back to the surface. Flaming ash falls like snow, hissing and sputtering in the water. Meteors whistle down, crashing into the islands.

I am alone, fighting to keep my head above the waves.

Hyrule is lost. I ran out of time.

I wash up on shore amidst the burning wood, the harp clutched tight in my hand.


	15. Chapter 15

Chapter 15

I hold Zelda's harp, silently crying. The world roars with fire and whistles with falling stars.

With shaking hands, I take the broken string. I pull it taught and mend it, just to do something...something normal. I hum aimlessly, cradling the last piece of her, the sound echoing painfully in my empty chest.

I touch the strings. They sob under my fingers. Fi hasn't spoken. The Master Sword remains cold and dead, the light having gone out.

I begin to play a forgotten song. It is solemn and pondering, like the gradual flow of time. I pause, fighting the tears welling up inside me. Angry I strum the tune backwards, marring it with every stroke. I throw the harp down and cover my face. I scream into them, long and hard until my ribs almost break from the pressure.

The wind breezes over my carcass. I am ready to die. The wind picks up suddenly, pushing me, tugging me. I look up. I wipe my eyes. The ash is rising into the sky, the falling stars streak backwards, and the wall of fire reseeds painting the sky blue again. I fall to my knees as I watch the sun fly from west to east, three times before it slows at the horizon of dawn. All is calm, all is new and fresh and bright. My wounds have been sealed. I am feeling alive and full of hope despite my terror.

"Fi?" I call.

"Master!" she flips out of the sword. It now glows with its former power. "Master, you reversed time! Zelda is no longer dead! We now have three days until the moon falls."

"I did what?" I ask.

"The harp." Fi points with her foot. "It is Hylia's creation instrument. You tapped into the song that controls the essence of time. In playing it backwards you reversed us back three days."

I remember, some time ago, playing a little Ocarina at the top of a tower, beneath the glaring eyes of Majora and the falling moon. That little instrument was a piece of the heavens too and its fibres connected directly to creation as did this harp. Hylia has given me a second chance without even knowing it.

"That's more than enough time to stop Vaati from kidnapping Zelda!" I say. "We can even steal the Majora's Mask from Ghirahim and prevent the moon from falling at all!" I am bright with relief and joy. I want to dance. But that would be weird.

"As much as I like that idea, we cannot do that." Fi says.

"Why not?" I ask.

"Because, if we return to Hyrule's shores there may be a chance that we could run into our past selves. We cannot risk such a thing because it could potentially unravel the universe. No, there is better way." Fi hovers close to me. "We must go to Termina and awaken the four giants. They will take care of the moon and help us save Zelda. As for Majora, you must wear the Fierce Deity Mask."

"So essentially you are asking me to abandon Zelda to go wake up some giants?" I ask.

"Believe me, Master, you will be thanking me soon." Fi says.

I look longingly in the direction of Hyrule. Instead I turn south in toward Termina.

I had to build a raft, but the voyage was short. I arrived at a lonely beach. The Great Bay is empty and quiet. The pirate fortress sits in a cove to the west. There is one house on this beach. It all seems very familiar. Of course it is. I was here many centuries ago, in another life. I pass a man, sitting under a hide covering, his wears out on display. I stop a moment. He is smiling at me. Masks of all colours and shapes are piled all round him neatly. There are three masks that catch my attention. One is the face of a Zora, another a Goron and the last a Deku. They are hanging in the back as if forgotten.

"Come, come choose a mask, any mask!" the man beckons, beside himself with excitement. I don't exactly trust him. He makes me feel weird and he moves sporadically. "The Festival is near!"

"Master," comes Fi's voice in my head. "I'm detecting that these masks have transformation properties. I suggest we take them, they might be useful."

"Not the Deku." I mutter. Who would want to turn into an embarrassing little wooden creature with a trumpet snout?

"I never said take that one." Fi says. I snort.

"Yes?" the man leans forward, smiling brightly.

"Uh..." to be honest I'm a little appalled. Is his face stuck that way? "How much for the Zora and Goron masks?"

His eyes light up.

"Oh are you sure those are the ones you want? You may get more than you bargained for!"

"That I already have." I say, "How much?"

"They are already yours." he says in a low voice that chills me. With that he hands them to me.

I lift them, feeling a tingling in my fingers. I know these masks...and the people they once were. The Zora, died in my arms when I was a boy. And the Goron's ghost haunted me until I healed his soul with a song.

"Do you by any chance, own the Fierce Deity Mask?" I ask him. His face suddenly goes solemn.

"The one in the canyon swallowed its evil. Not you nor I will ever get our hands on its radiance."

I hurry away from the place. I feel the happy mask salesman's eyes on my back as I go. I step through a passage into a vast moor. It's strange recognizing a land that I have never been to. There is a city nestled in the center with a clock tower that reaches the sky: Clock Town.

"So where are these giants?" I ask, my past life too far away to recall. Fi sighs.

"Let's ask around. I'm sure there are people that know the legend."

Inside the city, tents of all colours litter the streets. People trade furs, handcrafted weapons and food. It reminds me of my home. A pain rises in my throat and I swallow to keep it at bay.

"You there!" Calls a woman. "With the golden harp." I stop realizing that's me. I turn to see a woman under a pavilion, her face hidden with a scarf and her legs crossed. A crystal orb sits in front of her. "I sense a great destiny for you, come listen to your future. Ten rupees and your secrets will be revealed!"

I turn to leave.

"You received that harp from my mother." This stops me. "In Kakariko, my home village under the protection of Eldin." I turn to her. Her eyes are smiling.

"Who are you?" I ask.

"Impa." She raises her wrist. A purple wrist guard woven into a Celtic design around the Triforce, gleams with its own light. In another life, my Zelda wore this, and my Zelda gave it to her guardian.

"Impa!" I kneel before her. "Are you...? Did you-?"

She touches my hand.

"My name has been passed down through my family for centuries. It has been my family's fate to take care of the Goddess incarnate: Zelda and her chosen hero...which must be you."

I feel a little sadness, wishing this was that same Impa, just so that I would feel less alone in this strange world.

"I need your help." I say. "I am looking for the giants."

"The giants?" She sounds intrigued. "There is an old legend about the guardians of the four regions, built in the most ancient times to protect our land. It says there is a song that will call them to your aid, but they are sleeping. You must go to them and awaken them yourself." She says. "One lives in the northern mountain, one in the southern swamp, another in the western bay and the last in the eastern canyons. Find their hearts and activate them with sacrificial blood."

"Sounds morbid." I say.

"Their energy attracts many monsters, their blood will suffice." Impa says. I nod. I am ready.


	16. Chapter 16

Chapter 16

The swamps are filled with flowers of all colours and shapes. Some of them are hostile. One even bit me. The purple water oozes and belches noxious gases into the air. Giant bugs thunder around the canopy, filling me with dread. I cut my way through the bush with the Master Sword, determined to get this done as soon as possible. I come to a clearing and stop. There is an apparatus, shaped like a heart- an organ made of pipes and gears, throbbing and pumping, sparking with electricity. On top of this mechanism, sits a man. At least I think it's a man. He has bright colours painted in warrior designs all over his muscular frame. His face is...flat an almost wood-like. Feathers replaces hair, and bristle down his back. Red eyes turn on me. He draws a sword lifts his striped shield and leaps down heavily.

He is eight feet tall. I ready myself.

"Leave now." Comes a doubled voice that creaks like old oaks. "This territory belongs to the spirit Odolwa!" he brandishes his sword and beats his shield. I charge. Our weapons clash with a biting ring. I run thorough is legs, dodging a kick. The blade nicks my shoulder. He throws me into a tree. I stab his arm. Purple blood spills out but he doesn't cry in pain. He back hands me to the ground. My face throbs. I roll just as the blade imbeds the ground. I stagger to my feet and duck a swipe. He is too powerful, too big for me. I hold the Master Sword skyward. Energy builds up the blade as I dodge. When it reaches its peak, lightening from the giant heart leap into the sword. I feel the vibration as it crackles and danced up the metal.

I fight hard with the white blade of lightening. I climb the heart keeping Odolwa at bay. And with a sharp cry, I leap at him and lodge my sword in his brain. Blood fountains into my face. He disintegrates, blown apart by the lightening. I fall and just lie in the guts too exhausted to do anything else.

Once I catch my breath, I sit up and look at the mechanical heart. It is beating very fast as if with anticipation. One of the valves has opened hungrily. I scoop up Odolwa's blood and pour it in. Nothing happens. I pick up more pieces, cringing as I do so, and I drop the gore inside. I hear a grinder within, juice the meat dry. Only when I have dropped in all the remains does the valve close.

Then the swamp comes alive. The trees whisper, the water gurgles, and all the birds go quiet. A deep whirring spread through the earth like a water. It travels up my spine and fills me with fear. Then it sings through the wood of the trees and the rush of the streams. A song that dips to the earth's core then rises up to the clouds. It was majestic and slow, sung by the swamp itself.

"Link. It wants you to play it." Fi says. With shaking hands I hold up the harp. I begin to play. It is easy to follow, like the song is already in my fingers. I strum harmony and pluck neighbouring notes filling out the tune until I walk it to the highest string.

The Swamp returns to normal as if nothing happened. The heart glows a soft purple in its pipes. It moves more like a living organ now.

"Call my brethren on the third day." A monstrous voice speaks from the roots of the earth, with vocal chords, so enormous I feel the vibration in my lungs.

In the cold of the mountain I stand my ground. A great bull hunts me through the snow. With a cry it charges. Lightening sparks between its horns. I roll aside and slice its leg open. It turns and grinds me into the ice with his head. I stab the Master Sword deep into his neck and the blood gurgles up with its breath.

I carry its head to the summit. The mechanical heart valves swallow it whole. The mountain shudders with excitement as the wind dances around me. Two more days.

Wearing the Zora mask, I walk on the ocean floor. I follow the ticking and throbbing sound of the heart into a deep trench. A Great Coloured Shark waits for me. Working my fins I evade his teeth. I generate a sting in my fins like an electric eel. I kick and jab as we swim our dance. I yell as one of the teeth imbed in my calf. I hide in a crevice to pull it out. The Shark prowls and lunges, desperate to get another bite. But I draw my sword and drive it deep into the roof of its mouth. One more day.

The Canyons are treacherous. The strength of the Goron Mask runs in my veins as I climb. My vanity is thankful I don't have the beer gut most Gorons do but rather a set of rock hard abs, quite literally. At the top I enter the Stone Towers, the entrance looking like a screaming face. Inside the place is infested with two, colossal centipedes. They drill and twist through the structure, building a nest for more fiends. I stab at their many eyes and go running for my life in the tunnels. They are nearly a mile long and thick as houses.

We play a dangerous game of hide and seek. I chop off a leg, they eat the ground from underneath me. They never attack yet I've sprained my ankle. They love to play. I can almost hear giggles in their hisses. Out of mere chance I fall and stab one at the top of the spine, ending its life. The other pursues me furiously until I turn and drive my blade into its center eye. With them dead I feed the heart.

The Canyon hums with gratitude and I collapse as if dead.

"Master?" I hear Fi appear beside me.

"Hnnnm?" I groan into the ground.

"Are you alright?"

I roll onto my back dazed.

"You did very well."

I smile.

"And I've been thinking about what the mask salesman said." she adds, "The one in the Canyon swallowed the Fierce Deity Mask's evil. I think he was saying the Giant of the Canyon has it... inside him."

"I guess there is only one way to find out." I breathe. Fi helps me to my feet. I bring out the harp and play The Oath to Order, the song the Giant of the Swamp sang. The cluster of gears and pipes that made up the heart quickened in pace. A sound like the sky was creaking open echoed down the tunnels of the Tower. Bits of it fell and crumbled around me. The tower was collapsing. I run out only to find the whole Canyon is breaking apart. The inertia knocks me to my knees. I slide to the edge of the cliff as it tips.

I cling on as the entire wall breaks away from the cliff, taking me with it. I close my eyes ready to fall, but the sensation never comes. I crack an eye, and both fly open at the sight. The Stone Towers are lifted up as the entire Canyon itself unfolds and sits up. Enormous eyes open just beneath the towers. They blink sleepily, then focus on me.

I find I'm at the end of one of his arms, clinging to the edge of his wrist like a little leach. I quickly right myself, hoping not to be swatted. A deep breath sucks all the air into the Giant's stone nostrils and breathes it out in a warm dusty wind. I nearly fall, even though I am sitting.

"It... has... been... long... my... dear... friend." He speaks in a thundering voice like a grinding of stone or claps of thunder. I just nod, half deaf. "You... have... come... to... ask... me... of... something... no?" he speaks slowly like he has all the time in the world.

"D...yeh-" I clear my throat. "Do you have the Fierce Deity Mask?"

With a crackle he frowns.

"These...must...be...dire...times...indeed..." he ponders. "Enter...if ye be strong...tarry not...lest you die." The Giant straightens his arm slowly forming a bridge. He opens his mouth wide and waits.

"You've got to be kidding me." I say.

"Well the salesman did say he swallowed it." Fi says sounding wary. Knowing there is little time and no other options, I walk down the arm and enter the cave of his mouth.


	17. Chapter 17

Chapter 17

Lava. Rivers of it pore through the living rock, flooding the chambers with heat. Wearing the Goron Mask, I walk deep into the bowels of the Canyon Giant. Columns of stone, weave like roots, the embers pulsating akin to organs. At the very core I find a cavern filled with magma. I follow the narrow trails through the fire to a plateau. Imbedded in the wall is my prize: The Fierce Deity Mask. The igneous rock fills it like a face, bleeding black tears through the eye wholes.

"I'm detecting a great amount of hatred coming from this mask. It's power is immense." Fi warns. I reach out to free it from its resting place, when the eyes blaze white as if having opened. I jump back. Cracks spread from the mask all through the wall. Lava trickles out in places. The mask juts out, supported by a stone neck. Shoulders break free, then arms. Fiirce steps out of the crumbling wall, his body formed of rock, his white eyes scorching me with wrath. He draws a sword with two, twisted blades, both gleaming red-hot. He is nine feet tall.

I draw the Master Sword and I am terrified. With a crackle my Goron muscles tighten, readying for the worst. Suddenly Fiirce lashes out at me. I howl in pain from the slice in my shoulder. Were I human, I would have been severed in half.

Angered with pain I charge. Our blades clash and our bodies twist around one another. I am losing, so I jump to a floating platform to catch my breath. Fiirce follows me. A dangerous game of tag ensues as we leap over the rivers of lava and dash down steaming coves. I turn suddenly and lash as he did, shattering one of his arms.

He looks at me coolly, cocking his head calculatingly, before he kicks me into the lava. Searing pain rips across my skin as I struggle to free myself from the viscous magma. I climb a stalagmite and cling there, shaking. Fiirce paces like a tiger, watching me closely. My Goron hide slowly cools and I continue to climb to the top.

I leap off and swing at Fiirce. He dodges, but I spin, spin like a hurricane with a cry just as loud. His leg breaks. Miraculously, he keeps his balance like a puppet on strings.

His blade comes down on me. I am crushed into the cavern floor. Cracks are spreading on my mask. If it breaks I will be a weak human again. I strike hard and fast shattering his other leg bringing him to his knees. I get to by feet and duck his next swing. With the same action stab him in the heart. Crack spider-web all through him and he falls to pieces.

The Mask lies at my feet, empty and waiting.

"Mortal." Speaks an ethereal voice, clear and ringing as starlight. "I lend you my power but for one purpose. Majora must die lest I take your soul for myself." Fiirce says. "Misuse my power, attack anyone else with it and you are mine."

I feel a chill roll down my spine.

Fi flips out of the blade.

"Oh Fierce Deity, forgive my inquiry, but where do you and Majora come from? Why is your power so great?" she asks.

"We are moon spirits. Majora is of the shadow clan of wane and I am that of wax. Our love was forbidden so we were banished to this earth. But our affections grew sour and we fought. Our powers were used to manage the tide and more importantly, give the people dreams. We plant ideas into mortals brains in their sleep, thus the world is in our hands. We used humans as pawns against each other. But Majora consumed me by some trick and swallowed my power as her own. She was too great to be destroyed so the sages had her imprisoned in a tribal mask. I was freed, but trapped also, for none trusted me. Here I festered, here I have grown wrathful. Complete my revenge and I will reward you. Get in my way and your eternal soul is mine."

I swallow.

"Agreed." I say.

I ride the shoulder of the Canyon giant, wading through the ocean. The other three follow, each as different as the four seasons. One is made up of the swamp land, covered in foliage, flowers and mud. Another is the snow peak mountain itself, frostbitten and white capped. The last is made up of the coral reef of the Great Bay, crowned with all colours and sopping with sea weed. The moon is dipping low. We don't have much time beneath the flames.

"There!" I point at the isle with the black cloud. The Four giants surround it growling deeply. In the crater at the center I see the black army, scuttling around like roaches. At the foot of the purple stone Arski, is a girl with golden hair. "There she is! Set me down."

The Canyon giant reaches down slowly and scoops up Zelda into his palm, as carefully as if she were made of frost. I run down the arm to her.

"LINK!" She gasps. I run and grab her toppling us both in my haste. I kiss her all over, laughing with relief and joy. "How did you-?" I silence her with a passionate kiss. "You've saved me many times," I whisper. "Now it's my turn." I roll and leap down at the foot of Arski, before a very unhappy Ghirahim.

"Why are you still alive?" he groans. "Don't you ever give up!? You just keep coming and coming! You pestilential brat!"

"Oh I'm sorry. Is your heart no longer filled with rainbows?" I sneer, remembering his entirely gay comment long ago when we met in the Fire Sanctuary.

"Feh, no matter!" He dismisses me drawing his black blades. I whistle hard, through my fingers.

"Hey!" I beckon to the giants. "Destroy this army!" Like meteors four pairs of fist come crashing down, pulverizing the masses.

"You little-" Ghirahim charges. I catch all his furious blows. I've gotten better. He's a breeze compared to Fiirce. I kick him hard into Arski. Zelda lands beside me.

"Did you tell them where the Ether blade is?" I ask.

"No!" She says over the pounding and screaming.

"Take your harp and go find me!" I say.

"Uh- what?" She asks. I show her we are holding the same identical harp.

"I time traveled. My past self must get your harp and play the song of time backwards before he sees me. If these giants are going to be here he- or rather I, must go back three days to go get them. Do you understand?" she nods though she looks perplexed, "Fi will!" I reassure her, "I will be appearing over that ridge in a few minutes! Go! NOW!" She runs into the fray. I yelp as I am yanked back by the hair. An arm as hard and cold as iron hooks across my throat. I'm lifted off my feet and crushed to someone's body. I kick, unable to breathe. Fi flashes into being and kicks my oppressor hard in the face. I'm dropped. I turn and ready myself, though I'm coughing. It's Ghirahim, though he's...naked, and brown all over with white designs. He is more muscular and much taller, his eyes completely white like his hair that has been swept out of his face. A red gem glows malevolently in his chest.

"You will pay for this, mortal." He growls in a metallic voice.

"Then come at me!" I jut my chin at him. He charges. And the dance begins. He spins and kicks powerfully, throwing me to the ground. Purple lightening gleam in his hands and he grabs my sides and lifts me, shaking me as the shocks spasm through me. He throws me down and lifts me by the hair and slams me into Arski. My feet are far from the ground as a struggle in the grip on the back of my neck. His body presses up against me.

"You know, Link." he whispers in my ear. "I've been looking forward to penetrating you." I kick wildly, squirming. He chuckles. I feel teeth on the tip of my ear. I turn away. I scream when they pierce my neck. He crushes me hard to him as he works his teeth deeper in me. My breath catches in my throat. This is strangely erotic. I feel sick, sick with rage. I kick off of Arski making him stagger. I flip the Master sword into ice pick and trust it back into his side. I'm dropped. I turn quickly to see Ghirahim on his knees, smiling, blood on his teeth.

"Finally!" he breathes. "That taste. I've been hungering for all these centuries!"

"Stay back!" I point my blade at him, holding my bleeding neck.

"No need." he chuckles. "You're dead now anyways."

Hands and red tentacles suddenly squirm around me. I try to turn but I am trapped.

"OOOOH! WHAT'S THIS? WHAT'S THIS, I SAY? SOMEONE CAME BACK TO PLAY TODAY?"

A chill shakes me and I thrash in Majora's arms. He laughs as he throwing me down at Ghirahim.

"What's the matter, little one?" Ghirahim yanks my hair forcing me to kneel in front of him. "Too much for you to handle?" he licks the blood off my neck sensually. I push him away and whip out the Fierce Deity Mask. I see the horror on Ghirahim's face before I put the cold wood on my skin. I stagger as a shock runs down my spine. Power builds up in me until it forces out a scream of agony. My body catches fire, and my form changes. I grow several feet taller and my clothes turn to white armour. The red and blue markings paint my face and my eyes blaze with white fury. The Master Sword too has transformed into a double bladed weapon, twisted yet magnificent. I turn on Majora, who is grinning at me excitedly. I'm taller than him, by quite a bit.

"Master." Fi flips out. Her form has changed as well. She is all white with the red and blue markings of the moon tribe of wax. "Aim for Majora's face, that is the only way to kill Majora without harming Maltzar."

I nod. The army has now been smashed to smithereens. I whistle again.

"STOP THAT MOON!" My voice is amplified like Majora's. The Giants lift up their hands and catch the moon stopping it dead in its destructive track. I advance on Majora.


	18. Chapter 18

Chapter 18

Majora laughs, his voice hacking at the back of his throat.

"YOU THINK YOU CAN WIN?" he spits, excited with rage. "THIS WILL BE FUN! THIS WILL BE FUN! GO ON FIERCE ONE, RUN- RUN- RUN!"

I ready my sword, a boiling rage that isn't mine consuming me. Majora pulls out his whips sensually and cracks them at me. I dodge and charge in. He laughs wildly, wielding the whips with mesmerizing grace. Everything seems to slow as we move at lightning speed, weaving in and out of each other. I'd catch him in a lock and we'd stare into each other's eyes like lovers, lovers that thirst for each other's blood. We break apart and run up the crater walls. Gravity does not apply to our dance of death. Our minds lift the rocks around us and throw them at each other, some clashing breaking apart creating little bullets that tear through us.

Back and forth our weapons lash, licking and biting like serpents. Majora leaps into the air. I follow. We rocket into the sky and gravity reverses bringing us to the charred surface of the moon. We dash across it, telepathically flinging pieces of the broken globe at each other. Majora giggles, tossing his crimson hair as if to flirt with me. I am filled with a lustful desire to watch him die in my arms.

We grab one another and fall back to the earth, where we land on our feet, locked together. Our lips snarl at one another as we try to break each other's ribs. I breathe his breath and he breathes mine. Majora kisses me and I grab his hair biting into his lip. We strain in each other's embrace, woven so tightly we are one.

I feel pain, pain I can't stand. We crumple. Majora is on top with my own blade pinning my shoulder into the ground.

"Fiirce..." Majora purrs to me. I'm gasping unable to breath from the agony. Majora hushes me, placing a finger on my lips. "Fierce One, you are too much of the heart...you love me despite your hate which is way...," our lips touch, "You will never defeat me." he whispers. He twists the blade and swallows my scream with a kiss.

I kick him off with both feet. He is laughing arms out stretched. The Giants begin to strain as the moon presses down on them.

"Come destruction! COME!"

I yank my sword out, wincing back tears. I get to my feet and wrath I've never felt radiates from me. My hair grows long and wild, white as the moon. It writhes with my rage. The crater trembles as my silver blood hits the stone. Every weapon that lay amongst the crushed army rises into the hair. Majora looks at me as the thousands of weapons point to him. The smile hasn't left his face yet.

"Link!" Fi appears! "Link, get a hold of yourself! He's Maltzar! Majora's Maltzar- don't kill him! Go for the face -the _face_!"

I don't recognize her. I don't recall the name Link. I am Fiirce and Majora must die.

All the swords and spears impale him from all sides. He staggers, but cannot fall, for the shafts that litter his body prevent him. He hangs there, stunned and straining to breathe. I approach him, cocking my head. I lift his chin, eyeing his terrified yellow eyes.

"I believe your time is up," I say almost soothingly. Majora chokes, purple blood dribbling out. "The Dawn of the Final Day has come to pass for you." All the weapons withdraw and he crumples.

"Fi-irce!" He pines, his healing ability unable to put him out of his misery. I raise my sword.

"WAIT!" Fi screams. I bring it down on Majora's face. My power shatters the mask. The wooden pieces fly form Maltzar's face freeing him, returning his body to normal. He lies bloody and mangled, Majora's healing having ceased. Fi hovers over his body. Her lip is trembling.

"WHAT HAVE YOU DONE?!" she shrieks. She turns on me kicking me wildly, but it feels like nothing but little gusts of angry wind. Sobbing she falls onto Maltzar, staining her drapes red with his blood. "YOU KILLED HIM! MASTER, YOU KILLED HIM!" she howls, grieving so intensely she might come apart. "FEIRCE DEITY!" she turns to me. "I _beg _you! Heal this man! If it weren't for him you vengeance would not be satisfied. Please I beg you! Bring him back! BRING HIM BACK! COME BACK! _COME BACK_!" She screams, clinging to him hard, sobbing with no breath having lost it all.

I watch the pitiful sight without feeling. But intellectually I am thinking a lot.

"You and he...you have the understanding." I say. Sobbing she glares at me, perplexed. "You mortals call it love- but that is child's play compared to what my race feels. The understanding runs deeper than love, so deep that not even hatred can sever it...This and this alone is the only reason I do this for you." I brush her aside, and breathe into Maltzar's mouth. Every wound drinks back their blood until the crimson pools are gone. The skin mends without a scar. His chest lurches and he coughs, very much alive. I step back and watch Fi fall over him, relieved and crying.

Maltzar pats her, confused. He looks to me suspiciously.

"Were you trying to kiss me?" he asks. Fi laughs and kisses him. I look to the sky. The giants heave together and throw the moon back into the heavens, it shrinks away, returning to its place among the stars. I feel nothing, finally free of my hatred. Singing deeply, the giants depart.

"My time here is done." I salute with my blade and shatter my own mask with it.

I'm lying on the ground, content, having dreamt I saved the world from the falling sun- or was it a moon?

"Master!" Comes Fi's ethereal voice. I must still be in the dream.

"Link!" I'm shaken awake. My Zelda is leaning over me, concern in her eyes.

"Hi," I say weakly. Zelda crushes me with a kiss.

"Well, that was uncomfortable." Maltzar says loudly. I sit up. Maltzar's kissing Fi's cheek. She is in his lap, snorting with giggles. I look around and see we are in a crater of crushed bodies. I remember where we are, and how very un-dream-like it is.

"We did it?" I ask. Zelda laughs and kisses me.

"Now there is only one thing left to do." Maltzar jerks his thumb over his shoulder. I look to the purple stone of Arski, glowing brightly and innocently amidst the carnage. "And I swear if this one sends us running off to another fucking stone I am going to shatter it, _personally...with a passion!"_

Fi shakes her head.

I hand the golden harp to Zelda. We approach the stone. Zelda adjust the harp on her hip. Quietly she begins to stroke a song, a soft one- yet full of valour and a kind of beauty that belongs in the clouds. I am transported to a time when I lived in a city in the sky, with a red bird as my companion. There is my Zelda, playing the harp. Her voice sings gliding like the sun, high above the clouds, joyful but determined. The Song of the Goddess flows forth flooding the crater with hope.

And it all comes back. My lives- every single one. Every hardship, every struggle, every friend every joy. My soul ages with the wisdom of my mistakes. I open my eyes, a new man. Arski explodes with song, bringing the melody to a crescendo. Indigo northern lights shoot out and fill the crater like layers of curtains. Clouds dusted purple as if in dusk drift around us, pluming in majestic thunderheads.

Zelda finishes the song and the stone continues to sing.

Through the music an ethereal voice speaks, neither male nor female:

_"You have a question to ask of me,_

_Ask it now and I will set you free._

_Dally not for my time is short_

_For my place is in Hylia's court"_

"I am Hylia," Zelda says with no hesitation or doubt. I smile. "And I demand that you tell us where the Ether Blade is."

"Demand, eh?" Maltzar nudges her teasingly. Arski speaks:

_"Demise and Hylia's weapon,_

_Was their child and their son._

_He burns with hate and flows with love._

_He is black as the crow and white as the dove._

_And out of the waves he came,_

_Freed from storm and rain._

_He walks upon this earth,_

_Not knowing of his birth._

_And where he can be found,_

_I will decree:_

_That he is standing right in front of me."_

We stare.

"What?" says Maltzar.


	19. Chapter 19

Chapter 19

All eyes turn to Maltzar.

"No." he backs away, shaking his head. "That's not me."

"What are you saying? That _I'm_ the Ether Blade?" I ask derisively.

"My father was a black smith, okay?" Maltzar snaps. "I remember my mother singing a lullaby to me-"

"-From a dream." I say.

"How would I dream that if I was a fucking sword!?"

"Mal, calm down-"

"NO I'M NOT CALMING DOWN!" He rounds on Fi. "What do you expect?! I was just told that I am an OBJECT!" He frowns, suddenly looking like he might cry. "And if I am... that means...I don't have a father...that can help you, Fi...help us...be human...eternal sleep waits for us both."

We stand in stunned silence.

"I am your mother, Maltzar." Zelda says. He turns to her. I feel a weird feeling in my stomach. Zelda a mother? Of I _him?_ "You seemed familiar since the first day you were brought to my tent. And even now, my memories of when I was Hylia are returning...I sang a lullaby as I forged you. Demise and I both raised your spirit from infancy. You are a strong blade, because you have the knowledge of both good and evil."

Maltzar stares, his eyes slowly flaring with rage.

"I hate you." he states. "Why would you raise a sword, giving it hope only to dash them by condemning them to an eternal sleep? A sleep worse than death because their soul- my soul is not eternal!"

"I'm sorry, Mal." Zelda says. "It was Demise's design. And what was I to do: accept a weapon of war and destruction to live in my Heavens?"

"You disgust me." Maltzar sneers. "You're the Goddess- CHANGE IT!"

"I don't know how." Zelda apologizes, looking away.

"But I do." Came a low voice. We turn to find we are not alone. The tall man, covered in soot, with flaming hair and a handsome face: the man I mistook for Maltzar's father is standing before us. "Come to me son." he opens his arms.

"_You're_ Demise!" I snap. He chuckles.

"It would seem your Hero isn't without all his brains." Demise says. Zelda stands beside me defensively.

"He has more brain cells that you and our army combined." she says.

"Malrego," He turns to Maltzar, "Come to me, and I will promise you eternal life."

"He's lying!" Fi says. But Maltzar is eying him thoughtfully.

"You mean, I won't die? Separated from all life?" he asks.

"It was my design, so I can undo it, for both you and Fi." he smiles, almost kindly.

"Bentzar!" Zelda shouts. "Your name is Bentzar! Please, stay with us and I will find a way to do that same! I will!"

"But you said you couldn't." Maltzar rounds on her.

"I don't know how, but that's because my memories have not returned. But they will, I will learn to use my powers again."

"And if she doesn't, and you kill me, your chance is over." Demise says plainly.

"Please, Ben," Zelda grabs at his arm and he pulls away.

"Bentzar?" he scoffs. "What kind of a name is that?"

"It means good ruler- you are the king of swords- the _good_ king of swords." Zelda pleads.

"You just want me so you can continue to rule your world of music." Maltzar says. "You don't care about anything else! You let me drown in the sea- your own son! You raised me!"

Zelda shakes her head, tears welling in her eyes.

"Demise cast you down! I couldn't find you!"

"Listen to her, blaming others for her mistakes. Quite the Goddess isn't she?" Demise says. I charge at him. In a splash of black diamonds, Ghirahim blocks me, throws me down and pins me with a foot. I can't get up.

"Join us brother." he opens his arms to Maltzar. He steps towards them.

"No, Mal, they're lying!" Fi says. He rounds on her.

"I do this for you."

"Mal, I'm sorry!" Zelda begs. "I'm so sorry!"

"Too late," he sneers at her and goes to Demise. The demon raises his hand and Maltzar is lifted off his feet arms out as if crucified.

"NO!" Zelda screams. But it is too late. Glowing red Maltzar cringes and his form begins to peel away revealing a metallic skin that is as orange as dusk. Black crescents and deigns paint his body, his pupils enlarge until they are entirely black and his red hear turns as dark as soot. He is naked like Ghirahim, but his arms: they are entirely made of weapons and bucklers; a complex mechanism with blades for fingers. His green headband flaps in the hair like it has a life of its own. Then a red hilt juts out of the purple gem in his chest. A curved sword, longer than any I have ever seen, shoots out and into Demise's hand. The white blade glows like the moon.

Maltzar is set on his feet, a lot taller than he was before. Even taller than Ghirahim's spirit form. He looks at his new arms, quiet disgust on his face.

"This is what I am?" he says bitterly. His voice sounds metallic like Ghirahim's, yet musical like Fi's.

"Not for long." Demise reaches out to him, and Maltzar swipes at him, his bladed fingers whistling.

"I HATE YOU BOTH!" he snarls, rounding on both Zelda and Demise. "FREEDOM IS ALL I WANT- FREEDOM FROM THIS!" The knives that make up his muscles splay out like deadly wings. "I WANT TO KILL YOU BOTH FOR CREATING ME! And I choose neither as my master!" he glares at Demise. "I'll serve you for one reason alone. Free Fi- or I will turn on you."

"Maltzar, no!" Fi cries, tears running down her face.

"It's a deal." Says Demise. A purple and black portal appears behind him. "Come, let us make ready our army."

Ghirahim steps off of me and kicks me hard. I curl choking and Zelda comes to my aid. Fi is staring, beyond words, crying silently as she watches her friend leave with the enemy. The portal vanishes and all is quiet.


	20. Chapter 20

Chapter 20

Zelda and I sit in dead silence amongst the carnage. Fi has hidden herself in the sword. I can feel she's crying. I freed Maltzar only to lose him again. I am furious with him. He is so selfish! And yet he joined Demise for Fi. And as much as I don't want to admit it, I would have done the same for Zelda.

"What do we do?" I ask her. She swallows, her expression dead.

"We look for the Four Sword." She sighs.

"For Vaati?" I fill in. She nods.

"And the mirror shield. I'm sure the Twin Rova wouldn't miss out on a fight."

"What about Maltzar?" I say.

"I'm going to free him." she looks at me. "Even if it costs me my life."

"Which it won't!" I interject. She smiles sadly.

"Let's go."

We travel to the Shrine of Four Seasons: the ruins of the Forest Temple, the place marked on Bruta's map. As we approach it I get the feeling it's watching me.

"Wait!" Zelda holds out her hand. She narrows her eyes at the structure. A yellow gem lodged in the stone suddenly blinks. A ripple effect runs across its surface as many more do the same. They are eyes.

"LOOK OUT!" Fi yells as purple tentacles shoot out from every window and door shattering wood and glass everywhere. We duck and charge in. The structure heaves, as its plague fights to keep us at bay. Eyes are watching everywhere. Even the tentacles have gaze at us.

"Bellum." I hiss. I'm cleared off my feet and smashed into a tree.

"He's too strong!" Zelda gasps. The building growls as its tentacles curl in like spider legs.

I hide behind the tree and look through my pack. My hands are shaking. There is a sharp pain in my lung- I think a rib is fractured. I'm so tired of this. I pull out the Zora mask and hand it to Zelda. She looks at me flatly and I shrug.

"Sometimes it's better not to be human." I say and I put on the Goron mask. Both of different races, we go in again. Zelda's fins crackle with electricity as she deflects and slices. I punch and pulverize every bit of rubbery flesh that comes at me.

One wraps around my body but I stab it hilt deep. Zelda draws her bow and starts shooting out the eyes. Soon we have blinded the creature. Like a poison he seeps out of the shrine and oozes toward us. It's a squid. It lashes out at me but Zelda pushes me out of the way. The scarred and dripping appendages curl around her tightly. The squid latches onto her back.

"NO!" I shout. Zelda's eyes flare yellow and her expression goes dead. She is now Bellum's puppet. An exoskeleton forms over her body making her one with the beast. She draws her bow and aims at me. I dodge and circle her, trying to get at Bellum's last eye which in her back. I know this game, I know how bring him down without hurting her. With a sword made of jagged barnacles she swings at me. I block. The teeth of her blade catches mine and she parries. I stumble back. She heaves again and I roll. Her blade imbeds in the nearest tree. I take the opportunity to attack the eye. It shrieks from the hit. Zelda spin-attacks. I duck but fall on my ass. I roll away from her kick. My rock body twist and bends as I evade her strikes. Anger burns in me like a brush fire, building with every second. How dare he taint my Zelda!

Finally I get my chance! I skid around a tree, trapping her blade in its bark. I come around from behind and stab Bellum's eye. The fiend dissolves into golden dust: made of the hopes and dreams of his victims. Zelda falls into my arms.

"Zelda, Zelda?!" I hold her, brushing hair out of her face, listening for her heart. She is cold and quiet as if sleeping. I breathe into her mouth. She chokes. "Zelda!"

"What are you doing?" She coughs. "Treating me like a princess?"

"...You are a princess."

She shoves my face away.

"Oh get off." She growls, struggling to rise. She is weak. I offer to help her but she pushes me away.

"What did I do?" I ask resignedly.

"Nothing, I'm just mad!" she snaps.

The shrine is moss covered and green on the inside. Four alters with gems each the colour of the Singing Stones surround a pedestal where the Four Sword lies. I approach it, I draw the Master Sword. I look at it then the Four Sword and back.

"Master," Fi appears. "If I remember correctly the Four Sword will split you into four versions of yourself- each representing the four seasons of your character."

I eye it an idea sparking within me. I draw the Four sword, still holding the Master Sword. I feel a shimmer run down my skin and I fall to the ground.

"Link, wake up! Link." calls Zelda's voice. But that's not my name. I open my eyes. I hear groaning voices, all sounding the same- my voice. I sit up making sure all of my brothers are okay.

"Link, are you okay?"

"I'm fine." The four of us answer in unison.

"She was talking to me." Snaps the one in the red tunic.

"Really?" Asks the blue, "Cause she was looking at me." he laughs.

"Do we have to fight?" The purple one sighs.

"Together we are, Link." I say to a very confused looking Zelda. "But separately we are only parts of him."

"Whatever," The red one scoffs moodily.

"HEY! I have two swords!" The one dressed in blue says with ecstatic glee.

"I'm called Jade." I say, ignoring him hugging the Master Sword.

"This is Garnet," I point to the red one who salutes sharply. "Lapis Lazuli," The blue one waves.

"Call me Zuli!" he says.

"And this is Charoitte." I gesture to the one clad in purple. "Also known as Char." He nods shyly.

Zelda looks between all of us. We are identical despite our clothes.

"Fascinating!" she breathes. Fi appears above us all. Her clothes now mimic the four seasons in a colourful swirl around her body. Green vines of summer, red rosebuds of spring, fading leaves of autumn and frost patterns of winter. Zuli gasps with starry-eyed aw.

"Masters." She says. "I am at your service. Work together as a team and nothing will get in our way." she bows.

"Don't worry, Fi. We won't let you down." Char says.

The desert is harsh and dry as ever. We return to the ruins of Zant's Palace. It was build over top of the Desert Colossus- the Mirror shield was said to have been placed there last.

"I'm thirsty!" Whines Zuli.

"We know!" Garnet snaps.

"This way!" I beckon them all into the darkness of the structure. We travel quickly, delving deeper and deeper into the underground passages.

"Aw it's a rat!" Zuli runs over to scoop it up.

"Zuli!" I sigh.

"But it's so cute!"

"Put it down!" Garnet snaps. "We've got work to do."

"I'm going to name her Navi! What do you think?"

"It's a girl?" Garnet asks.

"Well yeah, there's no dick that I can see." Zuli says looking between its legs as it struggles to bite him.

"Shhh!" Zelda hushes us.

I listen carefully. I hear it: a distant cackling echoing down the tunnels.

"We're not alone." I say.

"Obviously!" Garnet scoffs.

"Everyone stay together!" I gather my team.

"Go on, Navi, run for your life!" Zuli puts the rat down which skitters off desperately.

"Where's Char?" Zelda asks as we put our backs together. The laughing is getting closer.

"I don't know!" I gasp. "CHAR!" I call.

"Don't look at me I didn't see him!" Garnet snaps.

Then quiet suddenly the laughter swoops into corridor: A pair of witches on brooms. The Twin Rova.

"Aw look at them! Little mice in a cage!" Cackles one.

"Ooooh so easy to crush!"

"You're one to talk, you decrepit old bat!" Garnet snaps angrily.

"Well then, shall we teach them some manners, sister?"

"With pleasure!" A blast of ice shoots at us. We scatter.

"ZULI! GET DOWN!" I yell as a fire ball comes his way.

"Yike!" He falls back and beats out the flames on his pants.

"Quick RUN!" Zelda yells.

"Oh no you don't!" Kotake blocks our way with ice. Garnet swears as some of it traps his leg. We are cornered.

"Hmmmm, which one first?" Koume muses cruelly.

"I vote him!" Zuli points at Garnet. He punches him.

"No let's go with the green one. So many bad memories I'd like to snuff out." Kotake says, readying her wand.

"Or you can face me." Char steps around the corner, hands behind his back. They both laugh at the sight.

"You? The timid one challenging us? The mother and aunt of Lord Dagmire? you must be joking."

"Tell me." Char says calmly. "Is is that your nose is too massive for your withered face or is your face too shrivelled for your big fat nose?"

"You dare make fun of my nose!" Koume fumes. "Here let me burn yours off!" She send a jet of fire at Char. He whips out the mirror shield and deflects it at Kotake. She shrieks as her robes catch fire.

"Adda boy, Char!" Zuli cheers, pinching his bleeding nose. The two witches begin to squabble at each other's clumsiness. Out of anger Kotake shoots ices and Char leaps over and reflects it at Koume.

"Oh you want to play it dirty, eh?" she glares, as her fingers turning black with frost bite. The two witches circle in close to each other and in a flash are infused into one very young and sexy woman.

"Let's see how you handle me." she says in a smooth flirtatious voice. Twinrova. Char readies his shield. With her two wands she turns and comes at us.

"Here!" Char throws the Mirror shield to me. I catch it and deflect the fire and ice. Twinrova hovers and twirls, spinning frosty webs and breathing flames like a gipsy. We duck and doge mostly, passing the shield, trying to get a decent shot at this temptress.

Finally Zelda aims a ball of flame right into her face, coupled with a blow of ice. Twinrova falls. Zelda grabs her red hair and looks her sharply in the eyes.

"Where is Demise? Where is he? Tell me now!" She demands.

"No need." she splutters, her mangled face twisting into a smile. "He'll find you."

Zelda throws her down. Before she can recover all four of us, drive our eight swords into her body.

"Game Over!" Garnet snarls. She falls down dead.


	21. Chapter 21

Chapter 21

"What do we do?" Char asks.

Zelda gazes into the fire, hugging the Mirror shield. Zuli traces pictures of a rat in the sand with hearts around it. Garnet sharpens his Four Sword.

"We need an army." I say.

"How?" Zuli asks. "Where do you get an army?"

"The other tribes. All of them suffered because of Demise. If we tell them news I'm sure they will help."

"The only problem is, Demise has the ultimate weapon." Zelda says without looking up. "He has the Ether Blade. Without that our efforts will be futile."

"We have the Master Sword. Fi can talk him out of it- there is still hope for the Ether Blade. You said so yourself that you would find a way to free him and make him human."

She looks at me and smiles but there is sadness in her eyes.

"Alright, Link- I mean Jade." She corrects herself. "Let's do this."

Rallying the tribes was no easy task. It's hard to form an army against an enemy you don't know the location of. But in the end, they agreed to come to our aid when we shoot a flaming arrow into the sky. It's not much, seeing as there will be a significant delay. But the beacon lighters are on watch. The only thing to do now, is search for Demise.

"I mean he did say he had an army- how hard can it be to find that?" Zuli shrugs.

We come to the bowl of Hyrule: the very centre of all the fields, where the Draghan Clan thrives. They are the wealthiest and most advanced of all tribes. They have built a fortress of stone. And that is where our journey leads us: the last tribe to make a pact with.

"Do we knock?" Zuli asks as we approach the wooden doors.

"They are the most violent of us all, we need to be careful." Zelda says.

The hair raises on my neck. I whip around to see something black seeping toward us.

"Draw your swords!" I command. My companions join me, armed. The blackness takes shape collecting itself into a gelatinous blob. A giant eyeball seeps forward, the blackness peeling back like a lid. Two giant arms shoot out, the palms glowing an angry red. It stands up on these arms and lopes toward us like a severed torso. I run forward and chop off a hand. It turns into a black wolf, the likeness of which makes a falling sensation rush through my gut. The mangled beast tackles me. Garnet kicks it off and charges in. He hacks off the arm it's limping with and it turns into a python, thick and coiled. While he stumbles from its strikes, Zuli goes for the eye. The one unharmed arm swats him like a fly.

My skin prickles as I feel the wolf stalking from behind. I turn and stab it only to have flesh eating roaches pour out of the wound. I jump back flailing to get them off as they pick bits off of me.

"It's Dethl- the nightmare!" Zelda yells, arching an arrow. "Demise must know we are here." Her aim never misses. Dethl hisses, trying to blink away the shaft of wood.

Char delivers a deadly blow to the body onto to be chased away by redeads, clawing their way out of the oozing gash.

"Go for the eye!" Zelda shouts. "THE _EYE_, LINK!"

The four of us nod in understanding. Keeping the nightmares at bay we go in for our target. But Dethl doesn't make it easy. He flails his arm pushing us into the groping arms of the redeads and the coils of the snake.

Zuli who seemed out of commission made an unexpected recovery and nailed Dethl in the eye with the Master Sword. Shoving it in deep he adds the four sword and tears it through the jell-like substance. Dethl and all his nightmares dissolve into nothing.

I kneel panting.

"Way to go, Zuli." Char gasps.

"Yep." Is all he can say. Battered and warn we turn to the doors again. They open. The People that rush out I recognize. With their wild matted hair and blood red furs, they are the people that attacked my home: they were the reason I went on this god forsaken quest. With a club to the head I am out cold.


	22. Chapter 22

Chapter 22

I wake sharply. My arms are chained behind my back and my ankles are shackled. My blurry vision clears and I see I'm in a courtyard, surrounded by stone walls. The earth sways under me and I vomit explosively. My head hurts so much.

"Jade, did you have to?" Groans a voice next to me. It's Garnet and I see some of my sick got on his boot. Blood is running down his forehead. For once the fiery warrior looks drained of hope. I find Zuli and Char are with us too and we are all tethered to a tall slab of stone that is driven into the ground. How the Draghans got it there I will probably never know. I can see the man with the soot covered skin approaching, Ghirahim at his side, smiling.

I am leaning on my elbow, unable to sit up. The man stands over me and my puddle of sick. I swallow saliva trying to hide my fear in the tension of my jaw. Though my eyes don't falter from his.

"Kiss Lord Dragmire's foot!" Ghirahim hisses with glee.

"Changing names are you?" Zuli gasps, wincing. He has a black eye. "Last I knew you were Demise."

"Silence, worm!" Ghirahim kicks him hard making him yelp.

"Leave him!" I snap, turning. I yell in pain as Demise lifts me by the hair. He holds my streaming eyes level with his. My scalp is screaming.

"My birth name was Dragmire." he says to me calmly almost soothingly as I choke on my voice. "And in other lives I was known as Ganondorf. But yes, your little friend is right, I am Demise." His eyes flare dangerously. I kick him with both my shackled feet. He drops me and I land on my tail bone. I roll over stunned with agony.

"The reason you are alive, Link, is because I have something special to show you. Something I always wanted you to see."

He steps back to show a pyre on the dais before the stone fortress. My Zelda is strapped to it. She is impassive as stone, blood streaming down her face. She looks so much like the day she did when I saw her returning from the outer islands, victorious, with the blood of her first kill on her face.

"ZELDA!" I strain against my bonds. She doesn't look at me. Her expression is dead. She has accepted her fate. "COME ON ZELDA! LOOK AT ME! YOU CAN FIGHT THIS!"

Ghirahim laughs.

"Look at him squirm! Oh this is just so delicious I could melt with happiness!" His purple tongue runs up by neck and I cringe away from him.

Demise draws out the great, curved Ether Blade.

"NO!" The four of us yell at once. He approaches Zelda, no mercy in his eyes.

"Maltzar!" calls a musical voice. Fi flips out of the pile of confiscated weapons and flits toward them. She blocks Demise's path.

"I cannot let you do this!"

Demise pauses and eyes her.

"So you are the spirit of the Legendary Master Sword. Intriguing...Malrego." he calls.

Maltzar appears in spirit form.

"Master." he sneers with a mocking bow.

"Mal!" Fi gasps. He looks at her, but his expression is hard. "You don't know what you are doing. Demise is lying! If you kill Zelda- Hylia, the world will end- and there will be no reason to be human."

"What, so you want to sleep forever- trapped in a metal coffin?" Maltzar snarls. "I don't care what happens to this world- so long as your soul is immortal."

Fi's expression is one of disgust.

"Then I will never forgive you for all eternity. This world is my home. I would rather die with it than live to see it parish."

"Why are you so loyal to such a cruel queen?"

"Why are you so loyal to such a harsh tyrant?" Fi shoots back.

"GET OUT OF THE WAY!" Maltzar stands toe to toe with her, towering over her, yet she doesn't flinch.

"If you want her, you have to kill me, Mal," she states.

"No! Fi!" I yell. Maltzar raises his bladed arms, the dagger fingers spreading.

"Don't you dare!" he breathes, a tremor running through him. "I can't lose you!"

"You do this..." Fi leans in, "and you will."

"Malrego." Demise says. "Move her aside."

He doesn't move.

"Mal." he snaps. "Get her out of the way."

Maltzar runs a blade along Fi's jaw, bringing the point under her chin.

"Damn you!" he growls. With that he shoves her roughly aside and charges in at Zelda.

"NO!" The sound strains out of me as my throat collapses with grief.

I hear the whistle of his blades and the tear of it making contact. My Zelda!

She falls, blood rushing from her arm. She looks up at Maltzar as he towers over her.

"That's for condemning us." He hisses. He turns to Demise. "And this is for Fi." he raises his arms aggressively. Zelda leaps to her feet clutching her wound, protected by Maltzar.

"So, you truly are the traitor of swords," Demise growls.

"Feh, you made me like this." Maltzar sneers. Fi quickly slips by Demise heading for our weapons only to be blocked by Ghirahim.

"Naughty girl." he purrs licking his lips. She readies herself defiantly. And the melee clashes. Fi kicks and twirls blocking his punches. Maltzar and Demise go at it, Maltzar's arms splaying out into deadly wings of destruction. They whistle through the air, cutting and biting the wind. All the while Demise keeps trying to swipe at Zelda. All she can do is dodge and use Maltzar as a shield.

Fi delivers a round house kick knocking Ghirahim to the floor. She leaps at the weapons only to be grabbed by the ankle. Ghirahim throws her full force at the stone slab we are chained to. A shockwave sweeps out as her feet land, dancer-like, against the side. She crouches for a moment, her scarves suspended like wings. Her blue eyes glare, igniting to a fiery blaze. She pushes off and tackles Ghirahim.

Maltzar winces as he blocks and deflects his own blade. Demise swings down on him and presses hard. Sparks fly between the blades' edges. He bares down on Maltzar, forcing him to kneel.

"You will never win against your master," Demise sooths. "You belong to me, Malrego." Their eyes draw close. Maltzar is panting hard, a shred of fear lighting his glare.

"I belong to no one," He spits. Demise chuckles.

"Malrego," he purrs the name. "I designed you. I own every piece of you. Even your flaring personality is mine and mine alone." He kicks Maltzar in the chest. Maltzar rolls gracefully over the shoulder and onto his feet.

"You'll have to tame me first." He juts his chin boldly. Demise smirks.

"You will be begging me to by the time I'm done with you."

By this time, Fi had somehow jumped onto Ghirahim's shoulders. Using her legs, she flips, throwing him head over heels into the wall. Finally, she reaches the weapons. The four Master Swords glide into the crystal on her chest, transforming her into her human form. She grabs the Four Swords and brings them to me. With the blade of one, she shatters the chains around my hands. Ghirahim grabs her by the hair. She yells as he wrenches her back and knees her in the stomach. He throws her down as she chokes.

"You dare to think you can get the better of me?" he growls.

"I already have, if you'll remember." Fi hisses back despite her pain. Ghirahim charges his hands with dark energy.

"And you will pay dearly for it!" he snarls. I free myself and I leap at him. He turns just in time to catch my blade. We glare at each other with deep loathing. "As will you." he leans in threateningly.

"What about me?" Zuli flies in out of nowhere. I had freed Garnet's hands and he in turn freed the others. The four of us hack at Ghirahim's metal skin, making him wince and shutter. Char turns and runs back to the weapons. He's better with the bow and arrow.

Suddenly a massive creature lands behind us. I turn to find it is Vaati, his many wings spayed out, his long tongue licking his teeth as the eye on this chest devours us with a hungry gaze. We arrange ourselves back to back, facing both him and Ghirahim.

"Where's Char when you need him?" Garnet snaps. Vaati lunges. The three of us strike. We tumble and dodge teeth and fists. Garnet flies into the wall, thrown by Vaati's wing. I stab his eye blinding the creature. He wails flailing hard. I fall to the ground and cover my head to keep from being hit. But Ghirahim pounces on me.

"Aw, is someone scared?" He whispers.

"You wish!" I struggle. He lifts me by the hair, pinning my arm behind my back. Vaati stops his howling suddenly and sniffs. The eyeless wolf head slowly snakes down toward me. The lips pull back in a snarl as he catches my scent. I kick Ghirahim wildly. He's having trouble holding me.

"Feast!" Ghirahim laughs. Vaati opens his mouth and lunges for my face. Zuli clobbers his head. Vaati rears trying to shake him off.

"You won't get away with killing a quarter of me!" He yells, straining to hold on. Garnet goes for the bloody eye socket and stabs it hilt deep. Vaati melts into the shadows, dropping Zuli painfully to the floor.

"Bravo." Comes Vaati's voice from every angle, the sound of his clapping hands echoing. "Who knew you would improve. No matter. So have I."

He steps out from behind the stone slab, smirking. Lightening shoots from his fingers and wrap around my body. I fall limp. Pain shakes and spasms my body, but I cannot scream.

"I've always hated you most, Jade." Vaati cackles. "So like your whole form... Link."

"Stop it!" Zuli charges. The lightening throws him down as well. Ghirahim is laughing, delighted by the show. Garnet swings his Four Sword only to be lifted off the ground from an invisible force.

"And you, the hot head." Vaati chuckles. "Always running in without a plan. You'll be fun to break. After all you are even more useless than Charoitte-"

Vaati cuts short as a blade rips through his chest from behind.

"Wanna say that again?" Char hisses. Garnet lands on his feet. Vaati chokes and blood runs out of his mouth. Zuli starts laughing from the floor.

"Pathetic!" Garnet snarls at Vaati. "You're nothing but a little Picori masquerading as a wizard. A little speck and nothing more!"

Vaati's eyes flare. His form blackens and he transforms into a much larger, much darker and much more dangerous beast form. The Four sword is still in his back, but it's like a toothpick now. He swipes us all away with his many wings and lunges for me. I dodge. Something is digging in the ground around me. A black arm made of shadow rises up and grabs me. I struggle, hacking at it with my sword.

"Your time is near, Chosen one!" Ghirahim taunts before Fi clobbers him angrily. The arm lifts me high. Vaati turns to me, his snout grinning malevolently. His mouth opens wide and the arm throws me. I yell as I land on his slippery tongue which forces me down his throat. After a tight squeeze I land in a small cavern. A small stinking cavern. I cover my mouth as the fumes make me dizzy. I'm careful not to go in the water, which hisses with green acids. Thinking fast, knowing my time is limited I keep to the walls climbing along, listening. I'm going to blackout. I hold my breath. I can hear thumping. I inch toward it. It gets louder. I take a little sip of air and immediately feel faint. Almost there. The thumping begins to pulse in the stomach wall. I climb higher. I'm getting close. I'm shaking. Another sip of air. My head is pounding. The wall is now throbbing beneath my fingers. _Found it._

I stab hard into the flesh. I hear a roar howl above me shaking the whole chamber. I hack and cut desperately. Blood sprays all over me. This is gory work, I feel like puking. My vision begins to go black. I have to get out! I dive head first into the slippery wound. I squirm in the hot and wet tissue, working my way past bone and organs until- I spill out with a river of blood, bursting his eyeball as I did so. Vaati crashes to the ground, heaving painful breaths.

"Jade!" Zuli and Char run to me. I cough and gasp, so relieved to breathe real air.

"I'm fine!" I choke.

"I thought we lost you!" Zuli hugs me getting gore all over him.

"Come on." I pat his back. "He's not dead yet." The four of us approach his head. He chokes and whines unable to move. I almost feel sorry for him. On my signal we plunge our blades into his head. And his body dissolves into ash.

No sooner had he did so when something came bounding out of the depths of the fortress: Malladus. My brothers charge fearlessly and begin wildly hacking away at the beast.

I go to help when I hear Maltzar yell in pain. I turn to see him pinned to a wall the Ether Blade under his eye, Demise's forearm choking him. His feet don't touch the floor.

"I could have freed you, Malrego." Demise growls. "but it seems I'll have to blind you instead." I charge but I know I am too late.

Zelda yells, swinging a log of wood from the pyre at his head. Demise catches it without looking.

"Poor choice." He says turning to her. I jump in front just as he stabs. My blade deflects it but- the breath presses out of me as the burning sword slips through my kidney and out the back. I'm skewered on the sword, in shock. Zelda doesn't make a sound. The three of us stare. I don't feel anything at first, just that it's harder to breathe. Demise takes me by the back of the neck, almost gently, and guides me further onto the sword. I howl in pain crumbling over but he forces me to stand. "Game over, little one." he says calmly, as my wide eyes stream with tears. Zelda suddenly punches Demise in the face. He falls back as she goes ballistic on him, her eyes cold and dangerous. I crumple the sword still in me. I curl around it forcing myself to breathe.

Demise back hands Zelda to the ground. He laughs, truly amused by her efforts.

"This is exactly the moment I've been waiting for," he chuckles. "Go one Hylia, take the sword. Sacrifice your chosen hero with your own hands." The colour drains from my Zelda's face. "You take out that sword and he will bleed out, all over your hands!"

Zelda crawls to me.

"Do it!" I mouth over and over again. "Do it! He must die. I've served my purpose." Tears run out of her eyes and her chin tenses with grief. She shakes her head. Demise laughs- what an idiot.

"Just as I thought." he purrs.

"Will you marry me?" I ask Zelda suddenly. A laugh escapes her from the oddity of it. "I'm sorry I'm asking now." I wince.

"Yes. Stay with me! Yes! I will!" She holds me tight.

"See you on the other side." I say. I grab the hilt and wrench, a scream pressing through my teeth.

"No!" Zelda yells. I hand the Ether Blade to her with shaking hands.

"Make me proud." I mouth before the pain blinds me and I fall limp.

Maltzar:

"You ruddy bastard!" I charge only to be caught by the throat.

"Now the way I see it, we can both co-exist. After all, you would make a lovely pet." Demise says to Zelda bringing me to his chest. "I wouldn't mind reincarnating for eternity," he says his hand wandering over the gem in my chest. "The Ether Blade's power is all that can destroy us...unless I destroy it first." he presses hard on my gem. I scream in agony trying to break free. Zelda charges, leaps off the pyre and comes down on Demise. He uses my own arm to block her. I kick him as he holds my elbows, using me as a shield and weapon.

Zelda circles us with dangerous grace, her eyes calculating his weak spots. She goes in again. I struggle and twist as Demise manipulates me into his service, laughing while he does it. I go limp, making it harder for him. He shakes me angrily trying to force me to stand.

"You know, _father_," I say snidely, "Who knew things would end so easily?" He kicks me hard in the tail bone. I laugh wincing, "Temper, temper!" I tease. He grabs my throat and holds me to his chest. He hammers his fist into my chest crystal paralysing me with agony. It's cracked. I can't move. Zelda drives her shoulder full force into us, making Demise stagger. She leaps high and brings the blade down into his collar bone. He falls to his knees dropping me. Zelda winds back. Demise reaches out and a black sword comes to his hand. Ghirahim. He blocks her.

"You will pay for that dearly, my princess." he growls as blood oozes out of the gash. "DRAGHANS!" He calls. An army of the fearsome tribe gushes out of the castle. "KILL THE OTHERS! LEAVE THIS ONE TO ME!" The screaming horde avalanches over me and into the courtyard. Talk about over kill- there is only three of the buggers!

Suddenly the great gates strain, beaten from something outside. The Draghans pause bumping into each other, curious at what might be knocking. The wooden doors burst apart and a Goron barges in. He is holding a flaming arrow. Char's flaming arrow.

"BROTHERS UNITE!" he pumps a fist. With deafening war cries the other tribes from all the regions of Hyrule come pouring into the courtyard. The Draghans scatter, sorely outnumbered.

With me forgotten on the steps, Demise and Hylia fight. Malladus rampages around the courtyard, paving the ground red from his blinded eyes. Fi has returned to her spirit form and given the three remaining Links the Master Swords. The beast is almost slain. The Draghans tussle with the other tribes: the Gorons, Sheikah, Hylians, the Rito even the Koroks have joined.

Demise bares down on Zelda with no mercy, rage burning in his eyes.

"You may have the blade but you haven't the heart to wield it." He says. Zelda goes into scorpion stance, the blade arched over her head.

"Try me." she threatens beckoning him with a finger. She twirls and bends, dodging his hacking blows like a dancer, picking him apart bit by bit. He forces her up onto the pyre. Fire ignites in his hand and he lights it. Zelda is forced up against the beam, as the blaze hungrily rises.

"I will see you in the next life," Demise bows. "May you be a more worthy opponent."

Zelda leaps through the flame, singeing her hair. She arches back raising the Ether Blade high. I taste his bitter blood as my sword runs him through. He stands there in shock, Zelda crouched fiercely on his chest.

"_Enough."_ She hisses venomously. She drops down and rips out my blade, bringing him to his knees.

"Zelda!" The three Links yell as they run toward us away from the body of Malladus. In one fell swoop, Zelda cuts Demise's head from his shoulders.


	23. Chapter 23

Chapter 23

"Maltzar! Maltzar!" A musical voice calls in the darkness. I realize it's only my eyelids. I open them. Fi is over me, in her exquisite human form.

"Hey you..." I say softly, brushing a blue strand from her porcelain face. I'm in my human form. She helps me sit up. We are in the courtyard, surrounded by the other tribes. Every Draghan has been slain and all is quiet and somber. Zelda lays Jade down in front of the stone slab in the ground. The three other Links stand by. Char is silently crying and holding up Zuli who is beside himself with grief. Garnet just looks angry.

"He may still be saved," Zelda says, "if you merge into one again."

"But the Four Sword Pedestal is in the forest!" Garnet snaps. "It would take too long!"

"Use this." Zelda touches the slab beside her.

"Will it work?" Garnet asks doubtfully.

"Fi," Zelda lifts Jade's Four Sword. She takes it on his behalf. The four of them stand before the stone and together thrust in as one. Glowing like stars, Char, Zuli and Garnet fall back and into Jade's body. In a flash they are one, and Link lurches, gasping for air.

"Link! Link, look at me!" Zelda pulls him into her lap. Blood is gushing again from his wound. She holds it tight and begins to pray in a quick, desperate voice.

"Hey,"

"What?" She asks, on the verge of tears. Link smiles.

"You are perfect."

"I would have saved you if I was!" She snaps.

"You freed us, you freed everything, and everyone. And for that, I am proud." Tears run from his eyes. "I love you. I love you. I-" And all the breath leaves him.

"Link! Link? LINK! NO- NO! COME BACK COME BACK!" She crumples over him, sobbing painfully. I am in shock. He died. Fi is crying on my shoulder. I pat her, feeling empty.

Suddenly Zelda sits up, her expression is calm as if she has made up her mind on something. She brushes his hair, and kisses his lips. Laying him on the ground, she whispers something to him, then rises to face me and Fi.

"Come," she beckons though her voice is shaking. We rise and come to her holding hands. "I realize how unfair I have been as a Goddess." she says, collecting herself. She takes our hands. "Please accept all I can give."

Something rushes into me, something warm. It rides up my arm and nestles in my chest. Both Fi and I gasp as our blades are extracted from our chests. They hover, glowing. Then suddenly their light rushes into us leaving them dead. They clatter to the ground soulless. I feel different, like a shackle has been lifted off my heart. Fi looks at me and I laugh with joy. Her skin is still pale, but she has brown hair, light brown hair. Her outfit is the same but I can see her breathing. Really breathing. We are human.

Zelda falls to the ground.

"Whoa! Zelda! Hey!" I crouch down. "Zelda!" I shake her. Fi checks her pulse. We wait. She checks again- and again. She listens for her heart and sits up suddenly.

"She's dead!" She gasps.

"What?" I breathe.

"She sacrificed herself," Fi says, her blue eyes shining with tears. "She knew all along she would have to give us her life!" She covers her face, sobbing. "I should have known! I should have stopped her!"

"Hey!" I take her into my arms. "They are together now. Hylia and her hero. They will be waiting for us on the other side."

"How can you be sure?" Fi asks. I touch her chest, now free of the gem that imprisoned her. I can feel her heart beat.

"I just know." I smile, a tear running down my face. "Sheesh." I wipe it away. "Haven't cried in like _ever_! Not used to this business."

Fi kisses me. We hold each other sobbing hard.


	24. Epilogue

Epilogue

"Some say the world was first made of music. And if you listen you can still hear it playing. One can control the fabric of the universe should they find the right tune. But one can only access it with the holy instruments that fell from the Heavens. If you find one- you hold Hylia's creation in your hands...

"Link? Are you listening?"

My little boy with big blue eyes and messy red hair, yawns.

"Yes, Daddy." he says to me lazily.

"Do I have to poke you?" I ask.

"No!" He shrinks into the sheets.

"Well I don't know...this is a very important legend." I say wickedly.

"No Dad, No!" Link squirms as I attack his little belly. I pull up his night tunic and blow a raspberry on him making him giggle explosively.

"Daddy! Daddy! Look what I have!" A little bundle of joy jumps on my back. She holds up a dead mink.

"What do we have here?" I gasp with astonishment. "You're first kill, Zelda!" Her green eyes shine with excitement, her light brown hair nearly at her ankles now. "Are you going to put its blood on your face?"

"Ew Dad!" she says giggling.

"Do I hear little chu jellies out of bed?" My wife comes around the corner. She is very pregnant.

"Story first! Story first!" The two of them chant, hopping on the bed.

"What do you say?" Fi holds an expectant hand to her ear.

"PLEASE!" The two say together, making me chuckle.

"Alright! Get cozily!" I help them tuck in. I pat my lap and Fi settles on it. "Alright, years ago, our big house was owned by the Draghans, who were under the command of a very big bad guy-"

"You!" They point at me.

"That wasn't me! Honestly!" I say pretending to be offended making my twins giggle. "And this big bad guy wanted a certain blade."

"The ETHER BLADE!" Link pipes up.

"I'm getting there, I'm getting there!" I laugh. "So he sent out his trusty sword Ghirahim to find it and what did he find?"

"Link and Zelda!" Zelda says.

"Ready to chop their heads off!" Link adds.

"And so they did! They were both very brave." I brush their soft hair and kiss them both.

"Now have nice dreams of killing things!" I chuckle mischievously.

"Maltzar." Fi chides but the kids love it.

"Good night sweet ones." she kisses their noses and the two of us leave the bedroom. We look at each other a long time. Both swords free to live, both swords with children to raise. All thanks to the two brave ones, that watch over us even now.

"What shall we name this one?" Fi touches her round belly.

"Don't know." I say feeling the little one kicking inside.

"I like Katryna." She says. I smile.

"So do I." I listen to her tummy. "Our little Kitty's heart is strong. She's gonna be a warrior like her mommy!"

Fi kisses my head. I worship her neck.

"Come."

Together we walk out onto the balcony, and gaze upon the stone slab where the Four Sword still lies. On a monument before it, sits the Golden Harp a memory of Hylia and her Chosen one.


End file.
